This is Where I Leave You
by SisterAdelaide
Summary: Shameless Wybrose Trash. Angsty Themes.
1. Chapter 1

Dean stood in the dank hotel room, watching as Bray gathered his things. Normally Bray jumped at the chance to have Dean on his own. Especially when Dean came to him. This time though was different. Bray hadn't been happy to see him. He hadn't welcomed him with open arms. Instead, Dean had been met with an icy glare when the door had opened and now he was being met with an equally icy silence as Bray focused on packing his things.  
"I didn't come here to be ignored." Bray paused, but only for a second. "I get it. You're pissed about tonight." Dean shrugged, bringing his hand to rub his chin. "I'll admit it, Roman and I were being assholes, but it was all for the show." Dean didn't see Bray's reaction to his poor excuse of an apology. If he had then he would have considered leaving then and there. But he hadn't, so he continued on; completely oblivious to Bray's outright anger. "It was all for the crowds man. You know I get you. Sure Roman doesn't, but I do. Isn't that what matters?" What had mattered was Bray's love for Dean. More importantly that Dean returned the feelings that Bray had so freely given to him. Unfortunately that hadn't happened. All Dean had given back to Bray were the ashes of his now broken heart. "Bray? Come on man, don't be all silent like this. I know you're upset but..."  
"Is that what you came out here to tell me? Was that you get me?" Dean winced at Bray's cutting tone. He wasn't making it any easier for Dean to admit his real reason for coming here. "I supposed I'm to take those words as comforting?" Dean didn't have an answer for that. "If that's all you wanted then you're free to leave whenever you'd like. I certainly wouldn't want to keep you from that fine specimen of a man you've latched on to." Dean just rolled his eyes at that remark. He got Bray didn't like Roman. He just didn't understand Bray's need to be so caustic about it.  
"You're not keeping me. I came on my own remember?" Bray didn't respond. "He doesn't know where I am. He probably thinks I'm out drinking or at a titty bar or some shit like that." Again Bray didn't respond. He just kept rustling around in the drawer, methodically packing his things. "Are you just going to fucking ignore me while you pack? I came to see you. I came to talk to you. So how about you turn the fuck around and talk to me."

Bray obliged him by half way turning away from his bag. His glare wasn't any less icy than it had been earlier, if anything it had gotten colder, harsher even. If Dean didn't know any better he would have sworn that it had frozen him where he stood.  
"If you have something to say, I suggest you say it. I'm in no mood for your games...or your mouth. I have things I need to see to before I go." Again Dean flinched at his tone, but he quickly recovered, seizing the opportunity to change the subject.  
"That's what I'm here for. There's a rumor going around that you're leaving. Is it true?" Bray blinked, easily turning back to his bag.  
"Would you be concerned if I actually was? I imagine you and your brute would be quite over joyed at the prospect of me being gone." Roman certainly would be. Dean on the other hand wasn't.  
"I'm here aren't I?" That made Bray stop. "Look just tell me it isn't true. You're just going home for the week right? You'll be back...won't you?" The idea of Bray being gone unnerved him. It scared him. He briefly detected the sound of that fear in his voice.  
"The family needs me." Dean needed him, but he would never admit it out loud. "It's time to draw a curtain on this whole ugly charade." Dean couldn't hide his horrified expression. He didn't want to try. It was true; Bray was leaving.  
"But...but you can't fucking leave!" Dean stormed over, slamming Bray's suitcase shut so he would be forced to stop packing. Bray gave him an irritated look, tossing the socks that had been in his hand back into the drawer. "Is this about tonight? Dude we were KIDDING! You can't leave over a fucking joke!"  
"Can't I?" The fury in Bray's voice made Dean take a step back. "As far as I'm concerned the entire thing has be one cruel joke." Bray stepped away from the bag, slowly advancing on Dean, forcing the smaller man to back up. "I offered this place a new way and they ALL refused it." Dean's legs hit the edge of the bed, giving way. He fell ass first onto it, watching as Bray angrily advanced towards him. "I am tired of dealing with narcissistic fools that I am forced to answer to. I am tired of preaching to simpletons who refuse to listen." Bray just stopped shy of the bed, glaring down at Dean. "I am tired of being made a fool of...by you." Dean shook his head no. "Really? I offered you love. I offered you salvation! But you refused." Bray's voice got deadly quiet. "You want to throw your lot in with them...with him, then go ahead." Dean blinked unsure of where this was going. "I would have burned this world for you. I would have ripped that title from Seth's dead hands and handed it to you on a silver platter. But you said no." Bray offered him an odd little smirk as he stepped away from the bed. "So now I say no more." Dean sat up staring at Bray's back. He didn't know how to process all of that. Sure he had heard it all before, but today it was worse. Today it hurt more. Today it dawned on him that Bray's love had been real.

The suitcase was flipped open, distracting Dean from his thoughts. He sat there watching the last of Bray's things go inside of it. Then it was closed, without any flourish or thought.  
"Bray please..." He sounded desperate. "What about your cause?" Dean felt his voice get stronger at that statement. "What about her cause? You can't just abandon it." Dean got up off the bed, walking back over to him. "What's she going to say when you come home empty handed?"  
"She says there's another way." That took all the wind out of Dean's sails. He stood there aghast, watching as the suitcase was moved towards the door. What made it worse was Bray's apathy over the whole situation. The man that promised him he would never leave was now doing just that. He was fixed on going back to his swamp without a second thought. He'd lost Regal, then Seth and now Bray. That made something snap in Dean. He had let everyone else leave. He had watched them all walk away without doing anything to make them stay. He wasn't about to let that happen with Bray.

Growling, Dean charged Bray, slamming him back first into the closest wall. The very impact of their bodies colliding against the drywall shook the room. Dean's fingers wound their way into the fabric of Bray's shirt, forming what he felt was an unbreakable grip on it.  
"You can't do this. You can't fucking leave me." Dean raised himself up, staring Bray in the eye. "You promised ..." Before he could continue the door to the room was thrown open, slamming against the wall with a solid thwack. Dean turned coming eye to eye with Harper and the others. He'd honestly forgotten about them being anywhere nearby, let alone in the next room. "I ain't here to hurt him." Dean looked back at Bray. "Call them off."  
"Or you'll do what?" Harper started to move, but Bray held his hand up stopping him.  
"Its true, I promised you I would never leave you. But that's when you were mine. That's before you made me look like a fool. You left me remember? Why should I stay for someone who is content to be nothing more than Roman's stepping stone to immortality?" Dean didn't see it, but Harper smirked at Bray's response. They all stood there, watching as Dean's fervor slowly crumpled around him.  
"You don't mean that." Bray smirked at him. "You can't mean that. You're just saying that cause your mad at me, cause you hate him!" Dean tightened his grip on Bray, desperate to hold onto him.  
"Truth's a bitch to hear isn't it?" Dean turned, glaring at Harper. Bray's hands came up, easily wrapping around Dean's drawing his attention back to him.  
"I will admit that he and I both see the same thing in you. We both see what you could be. The only difference between him and I is that I would raise you to the heavens, while he seems fit to keep you on your knees." Bray easily untwisted Dean's fingers from the fabric of his shirt. "You've made your bed." Dean shook his head.  
"No. Don't do this to me Bray. Don't leave me."  
"You preferred his to mine..." Dean tightened his fingers around Bray.  
"I won't let you leave. Not like this. Just tell me what I have to do to get you stay. I promise you I'll do it." Bray got one of his hands free, running it over Dean's face.  
"Anything you say?" Dean nodded, feeling Bray run the pad of his thumb over his cheek.  
"Anything." Bray smirked, leaning in, giving Dean a kiss on his forehead.  
"Go lie in it." Dean's eyes popped open in shock. He briefly felt Bray pull away before Harper and the boys descended on him. Harper easily got hold of Dean, dragging him back away from Bray.  
"No...BRAY!" Dean clawed at Harper, reaching for Bray with everything he had. "CALL THEM OFF! Rowan grabbed hold of his legs, stilling them so he couldn't use them as leverage. "BRAY...PLEASE!" Strowman came around Erick & Luke, quickly glancing at Bray before he brought his fist down across Dean's jaw. They all watched him go limp, the room finally falling silent. The boys all looked at Bray, waiting for his guidance.

Bray stood there staring at Dean, completely conflicted on what to do. Every fiber of his being wanted to keep him. God wouldn't be something to take Dean back to the compound, to make him own up to saying he would do anything to get Bray to stay. Wouldn't the look on Roman's face be absolutely glorious when Dean followed Bray's order to finally end it once and for all. Thanks to this one moment he could he finally have what he wanted where Dean was concerned. There was just one problem. "It won't be real." And he wanted it to be real. He couldn't accept Dean if Roman was still in the picture. Quickly Bray ran his hand over his face, clearing the hair that had fallen in his eyes out of the way. "Put him in the car. We'll drop him off at the Gentleman's club we saw on our way out of town." They didn't need to be told twice. "I'll be along in a few." Bray glanced down at his shirt, seeing it all stretched and slightly torn from where Dean had hold of it. "I just need to change my shirt."


	2. Chapter 2

"Bray." The instant he spoke, Dean became instantly aware that his jaw felt like it was on fire. Sure he and Bray had argued, but he didn't remember getting hit. In fact in didn't really remember falling asleep either. "Fuck... **Bray**." He was met with an odd silence. There wasn't even the hum of the AC. Everything felt and sounded like it was absolutely still. It scared him. All he could think was that Bray hadn't been silent ever. Whether it was singing under his breath or laughing at something random or even snoring in his sleep; the larger man was always making some kind of noise. It didn't make sense why Bray was choosing now to be completely and utterly silent.

Feeling he had little choice, Dean reached out for him finding nothing but air. Well that explained some of it. Bray wasn't _there_. Groaning, Dean reached even further, blindly grabbing for the first thing he could find. He expected to feel a cheap hotel comforter, or at the very least an equally cheap carpet; but he didn't. Instead all he felt were rocks. "What?" He slowly opened his eyes, finding it hard to focus them at first. The world looked about as hazy as he felt. Swallowing, Dead made a consorted effort to bring his world back into focus. He shifted his eyes to the first thing he could find. Above him, piercing its way through the fog, was a soft pink glow. He narrowed his eyes at it, finding it to be as out of place as the rocks had been. Bray's hotel room had had neither when he had gotten there, so why were they here now?

Concentrating on the glow, Dean's vision slowly came back into focus. He laid there watching as the glow slowly turned into a flashing neon on sign that read Girls, Girls, Girls. He laid there, staring up at it, completely confused by its presence. "What the fuck?" He quickly sat up finding he wasn't in Bray's hotel room anymore. It seemed like he hadn't been for a while. "BRAY!" His eyes scanned what they could see of the deserted parking lot, finding no evidence of Bray anywhere. "No..." Slowly it came back to him. The argument, his reason for going, even Strowman's sucker punch. It was all there in one horrifying flashback. "No no no **NO**!" Quickly stumbling to his feet, Dean swiftly spun around, getting a better view of his surroundings. Again Bray was nowhere to be found. It was as if all four of them had vanished into thin air. "Mother fucking...son of a... **BRAY!** " Dean stumbled forward, feeling his legs give out from under him. He dropped to his knees with a solid thud, wincing when the gravel ground into his skin; the denim doing little to shield it. How could this have happened? After everything they had been through, how could Bray have just _left_ him? He stopped at that, ignoring the tears that were stinging his eyes. He took a weak, shaky breath, his eyes drifting back up to the sign. He kneeled there watching it flicker and move.

Deep down Dean knew why. He knew this was his own fault. He had taken the love Bray had so freely offered him and denied Bray the only thing he had ever asked for in return; himself. Sure things with Bray hadn't always been great. In fact nine times out of ten anything involving Bray was one step above toxic. But whether Dean had or hadn't needed him, Bray had always been right there. He was always ready to listen, and if need be he was ready to protect Dean from anyone that dared to do him harm. Not that Roman hadn't been. Roman had been desperately trying to break through the walls that Dean seemingly surrounded himself with for a straight solid year. He wanted to help, he wanted to be there, and he wanted to understand. Unfortunately for Roman, Bray understood Dean in a way that Roman never could. Roman hated it. If Dean hadn't known any better he would have sworn it was Roman's sole reason for hating Bray, aside from Bray generally being an asshole. Not that any of it mattered; Bray was gone.

Sighing, Dean shifted, gingerly pulling his cellphone out of his back pocket. He sat there staring at it, watching as the light from the sign danced across the glass. There was the person he should call to come get him and then there was the person he wanted to call. "Fuck it." Roman could wait. He hit Bray's number, waiting for him to pick up. "Come on you asshole." He sat there waiting, feeling his anger grow with every ring. By the time Bray's voicemail picked up, he was livid. "You. Cocksucking. **ASSHOLE.** " Dean took a deep breath, biting back the wave of emotions that were threatening to come through. "You think it's funny to dump me like I'm fucking trash? I mean more to you than that. I **know** I mean more to you than that." He paused taking a deep breath. "You can't ignore me. I know you can't. I know you'll listen to this." He brought his free hand, roughly rubbing his collarbone. "I'm sorry, okay. I'm just so fucking sorry about all of it. I'm sorry that I picked him. I'm sorry that I hurt you. I'm fucking sorry for being born." He felt his own emotions getting the better of him. As angry as he was for being left, he could stop the grief from over taking him. "You can't just leave me here." He faltered, finding himself sounding like a lost child. "Don't leave me. I need you." He sobbed getting one last plea out before he was cut off. "Please…just come back."

He sat there sobbing like a child as the voicemail finished its spiel and then hung up on him. It was stupid to be crying over it, over him. Bray was an asshole. Dean knew he was. But Dean was an asshole too. They'd bonded over it. They had been _friends_ because of it. Despite all the bad between him and Bray, Dean couldn't forget the good. He couldn't ignore the fact that he had never needed to question or justify Bray's love. It had been genuine from day one. " **FUCK!** " He threw the phone against the rocks, not caring if it shattered into a million pieces. He didn't need it anymore, or at least not for the next little while. Eventually he would have to pull it together. Eventually he would need to call Roman. Eventually would need to pretend he didn't care Bray was gone. Thankfully for him, eventually and everything that came with it could wait a little bit. For now, he was content to sit in the middle of an empty parking lot and fall apart.


	3. Chapter 3

Roman sat in the driver's seat of the car, occasionally tapping his fingers against the steering wheel as he drove himself and Dean back to the hotel. Dean had managed to get himself stranded at a strip club in the middle of the sticks. It made Roman roll his eyes at the very thought of it. He had spent the evening worrying over the stupid bastard. Roman had even canceled the plans he had had with his family so he could wait for Dean to give him some sort of sign that he was okay. Thankfully he was, but Roman wasn't any happier with the circumstances.  
"So do you want to tell me what happened?" Dean didn't look up from his phone. He only shook his head no. "Well at least tell me how you managed to not have a ride. If you needed the car you could have told me. I could've asked Jimmy or Jey to take me in their car."  
"I didn't want to bother you with it. A cab seemed easier." Roman couldn't argue with that fact. He just didn't understand why Dean hadn't called for one to bring him back. As much as Roman liked getting any alone time with Dean, coming to get him after a night of whoring wasn't exactly ideal. It actually stung a little that Dean hadn't invited him, especially since Roman had been trying to get a hold of him for hours.  
"Did you have a good time?" He didn't get a response. Roman glanced over seeing that Dean was still staring at his phone, anxiously tapping the screen to keep it awake. "Hey" Roman reached out smacking his arm, finally managing to get his attention. "I'm trying to talk to you about your night and you're fucking glued to your phone." Dean shrugged dropping his eyes back to it. "What gives? You hate that thing. Why are you so attached to it all of the sudden?" Dean just shook his head, not wanting to admit that his phone was his last physical connection to Bray. All Dean wanted was one sign that Bray had listened to his message. He didn't care if it was a simple text telling him to fuck off; he still wanted it. "Dude, what the hell? I'm about to throw…" Dean felt Roman start to reach for his phone. Growling, Dean smacked Roman's hand away as he jerked back.  
"I'm waiting on a text alright?!" Dean finally stared into Roman's eyes finding the larger man to be less than pleased with that news. "It's not what you're thinking. I'm just…a friend's in a bad place. I'm waiting for him to tell me he got my message." Roman didn't look like he believed him, in fact the skeptical glances he was getting were only making things worse.

Dean let out an aggravated sigh not wanting to stay on this any longer. He needed a new topic, something that would serve as a nice distraction for both of them.  
"Just tell me about your night. How'd it go?" Mindless small talk would work. Roman loved to talk about his family. Given the chance, he would talk about them 24/7. They would be back to the hotel and in bed before he was ever done. It was the perfect distraction, or so he thought. He heard Roman echo his frustrated sigh, silently waiting a minute or so before he finally answered Dean's question.  
"It was going fine until I got a phone call to come pick someone up at a strip club." Dean dropped his phone in his lap, his eyes snapping to Roman's annoyed face.  
"What the fuck? Are you fucking kidding me with that?" Roman glanced over at Dean, giving the smaller man the impression that he wasn't. "You're always asking me to call if I need help and now that I do you're going to give me shit for it? Would you have liked me to just stay there?"  
"I would have liked to have known you were going at all."  
"Oh I have to ask permission now?" Roman gave him an irritated look.  
"Of course not. You want to have some chick bounce her tits in your face, that's fine." Roman looked at Dean again. The smaller man seemed completely on edge and Roman didn't understand why. "What am I supposed to think when you ignore me for hours and then finally call me in the middle of the night like that? You scared me half to fucking death." Roman paused before continuing. "We're not exactly making friends right now. I was worried something had happened to you." Dean felt like an ass at that last part. Of course Roman was worried about him. Roman **always** worried about him. Dean could only imagine how this looked from Roman's side of things.

Dean had just vanished after the show without as much as a word to anyone as to where he was going. He had steadily ignored Roman all night, only to turn up a few hours later in a strip club parking lot, with a black eye and one step below frantic. Now he was glued to his phone, ignoring Roman while he was waiting for Bray to respond. Dean had to agree that even for him it was odd.  
"It's not what you're thinking." Roman only shook his head.  
"If you don't want me with you that's cool. You need your space and I need mine. Just next time, tell me first. I don't want anything bad to happen to you." Roman glanced over at Dean, giving him an unreadable look. "Just forget it. We can talk about it later. We're almost back to the hotel."

The car fell silent after that. Dean sat there staring at him, debating whether he should tell Roman the truth or not. Thanks to Bray, Dean had an out. Roman didn't know that he had gone to see Bray, more importantly he didn't have to know. As far as Roman was concerned, Dean had spent the night partying. The story really told itself. It wasn't a lie, he was just leaving out a key detail. It wouldn't matter unless Roman found out. _Unless Roman found out;_ that last part echoed through his mind. _If_ he found out. There was no question that _if_ was nothing more than a day dream. _If_ really should have been _when_ ; _when_ Roman found out. "So were any of them pretty or were they just average?" Dean turned his head staring at Roman. He thought about how hurt the larger man was over not being invited out. He could barely imagine how angry Roman would be, how hurt he would be when he discovered that Dean hadn't been completely honest about tonight. Dean couldn't bear the thought of that. He couldn't bear the idea of losing Roman over this. It wasn't worth losing Roman over. "Dean" Roman turned glancing at him, his face getting concerned. Dean stared back, struggling to form the words. "Dude what is it? I asked if any of them were pretty and you're looking at me like I shot your dog. Did something…."  
"I went to see Bray."

Everything felt like it was happening in slow motion after that last statement. Dean felt Roman slam on the breaks. The car came to a hard stop, nearly throwing both of them through the windshield, seat belts and all.  
"You WHAT?!" The larger man turned to look at Dean, his anger clearly showing. It actually made Dean flinch.  
"It's not like that."  
"It's not like what? You **told** me you were done with that crazy ass motherfucker. You **promised** me that you were. Now you're telling me you went to see him?!" Dean shook his head.  
"I needed…"  
"You needed? What the fuck do you **need** from him?!" Roman didn't bother to hide that the idea of Dean needing Bray hurt him. "You don't **need** a god damn thing from him!"  
"You're right. I don't." Dean hoped that would assuage Roman in some way. "But I heard a rumor about him. I needed to know if it was true or not." Roman looked even less thrilled with that excuse than he already was. "He wasn't answering his phone and I couldn't find him after the show, so I went over to his hotel."  
"You went to his hotel." Dean nodded, quickly realizing that had been the wrong detail to share. "How did you know how to find it? Did he tell you? Did he give you a key?" Roman paused, taking a deep breath. The hurt feelings becoming very evident on his face. "Did you met him there when you went out this morning?" Dean quickly shook his head.  
"No. I asked Carrano's assistant. She told me." Dean reached out to lay his hand over Roman's, but the larger man quickly pulled his hand away. "Ro nothing happened alright? I just went to check on him."  
"Why the fuck do you care? That asshole is poison." Dean rolled his eyes at that. "I fucking mean it! You two almost killed each other the last time you were together. Now you're going back for more?"  
"I told you nothing like that happened. Nothing like that is going to happen. I'm with you." Roman gave him a disbelieving look. "But whether you like it or not, he's still my friend." It was Roman's turn to roll his eyes. "We just talked."  
"About what? What could you possibly need to talk to him about?" Dean paused, his eyes falling to his phone for a brief second, before he looked back at Roman's irritated face.  
"He's leaving." Dean heard his voice break at that omission. "I was trying to stop him from leaving. I knew if I just kept him there that I could make him listen to me, but he wouldn't." He quickly brought his hands up, wiping away the fresh tears that were threatening to betray him. "He told me he was tired of being made a fool of and that he was going home." Dean wiped away more tears. "We got into it and his boys came in for the assist. Strowman knocked me out and they must've left me at the strip club on their way out of town." Dean looked away, his eyes dropping to the floor of the car.

Part of him couldn't stand to see Roman's reaction to all of it. Aside from being absolutely furious that Dean had gone at all, he knew Roman wasn't going to shed any tears over Bray's departure.  
"When you say leave…" Dean winced at the hint of glee in Roman's voice.  
"He's….he's gone." Dean heard Roman's smack against the steering wheel.  
"And you tried to stop him?! What the fuck is wrong with…." Dean's eyes snapped up to Roman's face, watching the jovial look that had been on it quickly fall. It was enough to force the emotions that Dean had been struggling to hold in out of him.  
" **Because it's my fucking fault he's gone!** " Dean brought his hand up, roughly running it over his collar bone. "I ran him off just like I did everyone else." Roman shook his head.  
"Dean no…"  
"He left because of me; because I made him look like a fool. He couldn't stand it anymore." Tears began to brim in Dean's blue eyes again. He didn't try to hide them this time.  
"He left because he's a damn coward Dean. What makes you think this is even real? For all either one of us know, this is some ploy to make you come back to him." Dean shook his head, getting more upset with every breath he took.  
"You didn't **see** him. You didn't **hear** him." Roman gave him an unconvinced look. "You don't want to believe me, fine; but he was as cold as ice Ro. I _begged_ him to stay. I told him I would do anything to make it happen." That news didn't make Roman happy. The very idea that Bray could have extracted **anything** from Dean made Roman nervous. "He turned me down. You think he would have done that if this was a cry for attention?" The larger man didn't know what to think on that. "Strowman knocked me the fuck out. Bray could have done anything he wanted. Hell they could have drug me back to the compound with them. What did he do?" Dean rubbed his collarbone even harder. " **He left me in a fucking parking lot!"** He flinched at Dean's tone, unsure on how to respond to any of it. He continued to stare at Dean, watching the smaller man retrieve his phone and go back to gazing at it.  
"So your friend…"  
"I didn't know what else to do. I was so angry that I called him. " Roman grunted in disapproval. "He isn't responding."  
"Maybe that's a good thing." Dean simply shook his head no, ending any further conversation on that topic.

Roman turned his eyes back out to the road, wondering if it was really true. Dean was right. Bray had been given every opportunity to take advantage of him. Normally all it took was Dean going to Bray's hotel room to satisfy the larger man; but tonight it hadn't been enough. Dean had promised to give Bray anything he wanted and again Bray had refused. Then the coup de gras was Bray having an unconscious Dean all to himself. Bray could have done whatever he wanted either in the hotel or once he had gotten back to the compound. He could have forced Dean to stay with him with just the simple promise of never leaving again. It was truly frightening what could have happened, but it hadn't. Instead Bray had cast Dean aside. He had just skulked off into the night, tail between his legs. Maybe it was true after all. Maybe Bray really was gone.

A flash of light in the rear-view mirror snapped Roman out of his daze. He quickly became aware that they were both still in the car, and that the car was sitting smack dab in the middle of the road. He turned, looking over his shoulder, seeing another car quickly approaching them. "Fuck!" Figuring they weren't quite done, Roman took his foot off the gas, steering them onto the side of the road. It was a good thing he had, because in what felt like the blink of an eye, the other car's tails lights were fading into the darkness. It made Roman breathe an unexpected sigh of relief. He took a quickly look at the clock. "Fuck it's late." He looked back at Dean. "Listen…" He reached out smacking Dean's arm agian. "Look at me Dean." He waited for the smaller man to tear his eyes away from the device in his hand. "He's not going to respond tonight, so might as well put that thing away."  
"You don't know that." Roman sighed. Feeling himself get irritated again. The idea that Dean was on the edge of his seat for even a nod from Bray bothered him. "He could send something…." Roman finally reached out, snatching the phone from Dean's hands. "HEY!" Dean tried to grab it back, but Roman ended that by dropping the stupid thing in the side pocket of the car door. "Give it back!"  
"You know what? No."  
"I mean it Ro. **Give. It**. **Back.** " There was a growl at the end of the word back that Roman really didn't appreciate.  
"I mean it to Dean. You're supposed to be with me, yet all you can do is fret over some psycho texting you back." Roman ran his fingers through his hair. "This was supposed to be over." Dean blinked not liking where this was going. "We didn't fuck his shit up over the summer for you to go running back to him at some stupid rumor."  
"So what are you saying? "  
"He wouldn't come running to you over a rumor. He wouldn't try to stop you from leaving. He would be pining over his phone, waiting for you to text him." Dean blinked, swallowing hard. Bray never had to come running at the mention of a rumor, he had always been right there. If Dean had wanted to leave then Bray wouldn't have stopped him. He would have happily gone with him. Bray would have moved the earth itself if it meant he would be happy. It was a tough pill to swallow. "How can you act like it's the end of the world that he's gone when I'm right here?"  
"Because I love him."


	4. Chapter 4

A week. It had been a straight solid week since Bray's sudden departure and for a straight solid week all Dean had heard was silence. He had called only to be sent directly to voicemail. He had sent texts that were never read. He had even tried a direct message to Bray's twitter, but that was rejected as well. It was maddening to be ignored. No, worse than ignored; he had been cut off. Bray had cut him off without another thought or care. Dean imagined it was all too easy for him to. Bray had his stupid family, with their stupid loyalty and their stupid devotion. What did he need Dean for? He had his goddamn family to keep him warm night. Growling, Dean kicked the nearest wall in frustration.  
Fucking Wyatts. He hated the thought of that. He hated the idea that he would be so easily replaced with one of those bearded freaks or really anyone else for that matter. Bray had been his. For all intents and purposes, he still should be his. But like everything else in his life, Dean had fucked that up. He had made another wrong choice. Now he was stuck trying to pick up the pieces of what had been.

Picking up the pieces wasn't necessarily a foreign concept to him. He had done it plenty of times before; Regal, Seth, His Mom. He'd had to move on from all of them. But unlike now, someone had been there to help him. Regal had helped him move past his mom. Seth had helped him move past Regal and as for Seth, well both Bray and Roman had helped him move on from that cluster fuck.

Roman. Dean closed his eyes when he thought about Roman. His instinct was to call Roman, but he stopped himself at pulling out his phone. Thankfully they were officially back on speaking terms after their spat last week, but the waters were still icy at best. Roman wasn't over the whole situation, especially the part where Dean had admitted he still loved Bray. Roman had been completely devastated at that. Dean really couldn't blame him. They had spent all summer desperately trying to get Bray out of Dean's life, only to have Bray refuse to go. Now Bray was gone, and Dean wanted him back. It had to be beyond frustrating for Roman. "Fuck." Dean opened his eyes, taking a deep breath as he scanned the area around him. He couldn't call Roman. As much as Dean wanted Roman to help, he knew better. Roman wouldn't give Bray ice water if he was choking on fire in hell, let alone help Dean sort things out with Bray.

In Dean's mind, he was well and truly alone on this one. That meant one thing; he had to take matters into his own hands. If Bray wouldn't answer him via every other form of communication, then that left Dean with no other choice. He had to go see Bray, which meant finding Bray. It wasn't ideal, but it was all he had at this point. He could only hope a better option would fall from the sky. If it did, great. In the meantime he needed to find a way to weasel his way out of work. Given that it was already Tuesday afternoon, he knew there was no getting out of tonight. But that didn't mean he couldn't sweet talk Carrano into letting him out of the weekend. House shows weren't as important as tv. All Dean really had to do was promise to do a little extra on the back end and he was golden.

Brushing his hair out of his face, Dean quickly walked down the hallway he had been sulking in. He felt a renewed sense of purpose. Maybe he could save this. Maybe it would work out after all. Maybe he hadn't fucked this up as bad as he thought he had. He reached the end of the hallway, slowly beginning to weave his way through the maze that was the arena. All he really had were the production signs and those were few and far between. Again they weren't ideal, but it got him where he wanted to be, minus a few wrong turns. It felt like he was standing outside Mark Carrano's office in no time. The only problem was, it didn't look like Mark was in. "Fuck" He peered around the corner, definitely seeing that Mark wasn't in. "Double Fuck."  
"Can I help you with something?" Dean jumped about ten feet at the intrusion of a female voice behind him. He turned seeing Mark's assistant standing behind him, giving him a rather curious look.  
"Jesus….fuck woman! Don't scare a man like that!" She let out a small laugh.  
"Forgive me. Next time I'll get the cattle prod." She walked around him, setting some papers down on the table. "Is there something you need?" Dean couldn't help but smile at her thick southern drawl. It reminded him too much of Bray's not too.  
"Yea, is Carrano in?" She looked up at him, smiling back.  
"Sadly no. He's indisposed at the moment." Of course he was. "I'm happy to take a message for you. I can relay it once he's done." Dean quickly refused, absently scratching the bridge of his nose.  
"I just need to ask him something really quick. Do you know when he's going to be done?" She made a face, glancing down at what looked like a schedule before she responded.  
"He's booked up for at least another hour or so." She looked back up at him. "You can try shooting him a message on his phone. He might be able to grab it in between meetings." Dean didn't like the idea of that, and it showed. "Seems like it might be urgent. Is it something I can help you with?" Dean thought better of it for a second, but he realized Evangeline might be a better way to go. Sure Carrano would fix him up with the time off, but Evangeline might be able to give him some insight into Bray's absence. She and Bray had always been very cordial to each other in the past. It wouldn't surprise him if Bray hadn't filled her in on what was really going on.

"Maybe." He scratched his nose again. "I'm looking for Bray." She raised an eyebrow at that. "It's nothing bad I promise." She didn't look like she really believed him. "I just…I haven't seen him since the last loop. Do you know where he is?" She gave him an odd smile, nodding slightly.  
"He had a family emergency. He should be back in the next week or so." That really didn't do Dean any good.  
"Are you sure?" Again she raised an eyebrow. "I mean he was just…upset and all." Evangeline paused what she was doing, setting the piece of paper that had been in her hand down onto the table.  
"Is there any reason I shouldn't be sure?" Dean blinked, panicking slightly. He meant to play this cool, but in his desperation, he'd obviously forgotten the cool part.  
"No!" Dean brought his hand up, rubbing his collarbone. "I just need to talk to him. Like really need to talk to him and he's not here."  
"Have you tried giving him a call?" Dean paused, giving her an uncertain look for a moment. "I won't be coy and pretend I don't know what went on between you two." She leaned in slightly, not doing much to stop the terror that was ebbing through him. He had been sure that he and Bray's relationship had private. Apparently it hadn't been. "The make-up ladies know everything." She leaned back, smiling at him again. "So have you called him?" Dean swallowed, nervously nodding his head yes. It still terrified him to think that other people knew, but Evangeline knowing made his little fact finding mission a little easier.  
"He won't answer." Dean started rubbing his collarbone again. "I've called and texted like twenty times, but they're all being ignored." She gave him a sympathetic look. "I just really need to fucking talk to him and he won't pick up."  
"I can tell you from experience that he's awful about charging his phone. He's always losing his charger and when he does have it, he never plugs his phone in." Dean hadn't thought about it like that. It made complete sense that Bray's phone was dead. He didn't really need it anymore, so why bother to charge it? "I've told him that one of the boys should take care of it for him, but he tells me they're as bad as he is about it. I usually have to call the house just to get a hold of him." The house. Dean paused again, staring down at her in wonder. Evangeline had Bray's house number. Of course she had Bray's house number. She was the assistant to the Director of Talent. She probably had a way to reach everybody. But that didn't really matter to Dean. He didn't care about everybody, he only cared about Bray. "Give him…"  
"Can you call it?" He hadn't meant to blurt it out like he had, but he couldn't help it. The idea of there being another way to reach Bray excited him way too much not to.

Evangeline paused, looking at him slightly confused. "I mean the house. Can you call his house for me?" The confusion quickly vanished. I was replaced by a stern look.  
"No."  
"Then can you give me the number so I can call it?" The look got sterner.  
"No. He would kill me if I did that." Dean shook his head.  
"I won't tell him it was you. Come on Evangeline. I need to talk to him." Again she refused.  
"He would know, because I'm the only one that has it. If you really need to talk to him then try his cell again. If he doesn't answer then you'll have to wait till he gets back." Dean stepped closer to her, forcing her to back up a bit.  
"Evangeline please." He gently grabbed her by her arms, startling her. "You're my only hope. I can't wait a week, because I don't know if he'll be back in a week." She gave him an odd look.  
"What do you mean you don't know he won't be back?" Crap. Dean hadn't meant to say that. He ignored her question, pulling her closer. If she wouldn't call the house, fine. He could sort of respect that. But that didn't mean she couldn't reach out to him another way. "If you won't call the house, then call his cell for me." The stern look returned.  
"Dean. No."  
"I just want to see if it's working. If you go straight to voicemail then I know it's off. I can wait if it's off." And if it didn't then he could easily get the phone from her without too much trouble. Evangeline only came up to his chest. He doubted she could do him any harm, especially in heels. "Just do this for me."  
"NO" She wrenched herself free from his grip. "Even if I wanted too, which I don't, I can't. It's against company policy. Mark would have my ass if he found out I was making personal calls like that to other employees." Her look softened slightly. "Just give him space, okay?" He would give Bray all the space he wanted, once Dean managed to talk to him. "I need to go meet Mark. Do you need anything else before I go?" Dean paused, wanting to rebut, but then he saw it. Behind her was her purse and sticking out of her purse was her phone. It dawned on him that maybe he didn't need Evangeline to do anything for him after all. He just needed her phone.

He quickly looked back at her, shaking his head no. "Okay then." She offered a forced smile, easily picking some of the files up off the table. "Best of luck tonight." Dean gave her an equally forced smile, mumbling a thanks as she walked off; leaving him and her phone behind.


	5. Chapter 5

_Dean._  
Bray stood at the foot of the bed, leaning against the footboard for support. All he could manage to do was stare. _Where had he come from?_ The last time Bray had even seen Dean was a week ago when he had left him behind. Since then all Dean had been to Bray was a painful memory; one he rarely thought about. Yet here he was in the flesh. Slowly, Bray turned to look at Luke, who was lurking in the doorway behind him. He seemed just as baffled as Bray. It was as if they were both silently asking the same question; _how had he even gotten here?_ As far as either of them knew, Dean had never come to the compound before now. Dean hadn't even asked where it was. It made no sense to either man how he had managed to find his way here.

Bray turned back, looking at Dean's still form once again. All the questions slowly began to fade away. He could get the answers he wanted when Dean woke up. For now, there was only one question that really needed to be answered; what was he supposed to _do_ with Dean?  
"Do you want me to kill him?" Bray quickly shook his head no as he continued to stare. While Luke's suggestion was helpful, it wasn't the proper course of action. Dean would be missed. Questions would be asked and searches would be launched. It was already bad enough that he had turned up with no invitation or explanation. Bray had no intention of making it worse by killing him.  
"I'm sure they've all realized he's missing. People are probably already looking for him." By people he meant Roman. Bray was sure Roman was already looking for him. The last thing Bray wanted was for that over grown brute to turn up here unannounced. Things could get very ugly, very quickly if that happened.

Bray turned away from Dean again. He still felt at a slight loss for words, but the shock of Dean's sudden appearance in his house was finally beginning to wear off. In its place was a mixture of anger and pure joy. There was no denying that there was a part of Bray that was elated to see Dean again. That part was even more elated that he was seeing Dean _here_ and not in some scuzzy hotel. The idea that his greatest desire was with in arms reach practically sent Bray over the moon. But that's where the elation quickly faded. Yes his greatest desire was with in arms reach, but he couldn't have it; mainly because Dean wasn't his. All it would take was for Bray to make one move on Dean, and Roman would come riding in to _save_ him from the monster that had him. It wouldn't matter to Roman that Dean had come here on his own; that up until an hour ago, Bray had no idea Dean was even on his way. Roman would twist this so it would be Bray's fault. He always did. Because of that, Bray had to stand there and stare at the stupid bastard while he drooled all over the sheets. It was infuriating.  
"If he's bothering you I can take him away." Bray shook his head, welcoming the intrusion of Luke's voice.  
"No. Leave him for now." Bray thoughtfully ran his fingers over his beard. "Was he found with anything?" Luke shook his head no. "Not even a wallet or a phone?"  
"Braun and Erick are following his path to see if he may have dropped anything along the way, but as of now nothing's been found." Bray furrowed his brow nodding in confusion. "He was in a bad way when we found him. He had probably been wandering for hours, maybe even days. It's hard to say." Bray didn't like the sound of that. "I suppose it's not a stretch as to what he was looking for."  
"No, I suppose it isn't." Bray quickly looked away from Luke, guiltily bringing one of his hands up to rub the back of his neck. After the unexpected phone call from Dean the other day, Bray had hoped this had been over with. He should have known better. This wasn't going to end with a phone call. Dean wasn't going to be satisfied until he had it out with Bray once and for all.  
"When you're ready, I can leave him in a place where he'll be found. No one will be the wiser."  
"Until he wakes up." Bray looked back at Luke. "He'll ask for me. You know anyone local will just bring him right back here." Bray tapped his fingers against the footboard. "If he's here for me then he won't stop until he sees me. It doesn't matter how many times I send him away. He'll just keep coming until he gets what he wants, especially since he knows where to find me. I won't risk him coming back a second time just to relieve myself of the emotions this has brought."  
"I can see to it there isn't a second time." Again shook Bray head, denying Luke the chance to end Dean.  
"No. If he wants to finish this then fine, we'll finish it. Then he can go back to Roman and all will be as it was before."

Bray intentionally looked back Dean, ignoring the look on Luke's face at his last comment. He knew Luke disapproved of the entire relationship. Nothing would have made Luke happier, than if they could go back to before Dean; but that wasn't a reality. As much as Bray wanted to go back, he couldn't. Dean had left his mark on him. There was no changing that. "In the mean time we need to insure we have no unwanted visitors." Luke quickly nodded in agreement. Strangers weren't welcome. Strangers with badges were even less welcome. None of them wanted or needed either turning up.  
"Do you want me to phone the company?" Bray shook his head no.  
"That won't be enough. Even if they do believe us." Which they wouldn't. "We can't risk them sending someone to check up on him." Bray paused, taking a deep breath. "I know who we need to call." Luke raised an eyebrow to that. "She can buy us some more time."  
"You're sure she'll help?" Bray nodded, nervously running his fingers over his hair. "I thought she said she couldn't do anymore after the last time."  
"She did, but that was for us, not for him. She can get him a few days."  
"You're sure." Bray nodded again.  
"She won't like it, but she'll do it." Bray paused, taking a deep breath. "It's far from ideal, but we don't have much choice in the matter. He's not fit to travel." Again Bray paused, absently scratching an itch as he thought about it. "I doubt she'll be any happier with us….with me if we leave him half dead on her doorstep. If we expect her help in the future then we need to do this properly." Luke nodded, not really liking that response, but he couldn't deny that Bray was right. While she had been in Bray's debt in the past, she could easily argue that she had more than paid him back in the amount of favors she had done for him over his tenure in WWE. Any further favors had to be considered carefully, as those favors put Bray in her debt. That was something Luke definitely didn't like. Anyone having control of Bray could spell bad news for him and the family. "There's no sense in calling her now. She probably won't answer anyway. She'll be busy with what she calls work." Bray paused, taking in a shallow breath. "I'll call her tonight when things have settled for her."  
"And him?" Bray looked at Dean one last time.  
"For now, leave him. Have either Erick or Braun stand watch when they come back."  
"You don't want to lock him in? It would be easier." And safer. "Suppose he gets out?" Bray looked back at Luke.  
"Suppose he doesn't. Locking him in only encourages the idea that we are keeping him here against his will." Bray ran the hand that hold of the footboard over the smooth wood, wiping away the dust that had settled on it. "These fools are visual. All Roman will need is a locked door for a reason and then he'll raise six shades of Cain so he can _save_ Dean." Luke hadn't thought of it like that. "If Dean was as bad as you say, then he won't be strong enough to do much of anything when he first wakes up. Just have the boys stand watch for now. Make sure they come get me when he's close to waking, or he is awake. I'll make my expectations regarding his access to my house clear at that juncture. If he disobeys after that, then we'll see if more severe measures need to be taken." Luke smirked, obviously liking the sound of that. "But only after that point. Not one hair is to be harmed until I've dealt with him. Are we clear?" Luke only nodded yes in response, his eyes firmly fixed on Dean. They were clear. Let the rat sleep for now. Luke could wait.


	6. Chapter 6

Dean woke up with a start. His eyes flew around the dark space, trying to place where he was. The last thing he remembered was being lost in the woods; something had been chasing him, but he couldn't remember what. He remembered being in a panic, doing his best to get away and then there was nothing. Just darkness. "Fuck." Obviously whatever had been after him, had gotten him. He looked around again, hoping to find anything that seemed familiar, but again, there was nothing. The space was just too dark.

Slowly, he sat up, grimacing as his tired body protested in response. He actually found himself slightly relieved that he could sit up. "Hello?" He paused waiting a second before he spoke again. "Is anyone there?" All he got for a response was the structure creaking against the wind. "Huh." He wriggled his limbs finding that like nothing was keeping him secured to the bed. He was seemingly free to leave it, that's if he could manage to find the energy to. Again the house creaked against the wind, or maybe it was the floor; he couldn't tell. All he knew was he didn't like it. It reminded him of some B horror flick that he and Bray had watched one night. The killer had been sneaking up on his victim and all the floor had done was creak. "Stupid fucking movie. Stupid fucking Wyatt."  
'Evening sunshine." Dean nearly jumped out of his skin at the intrusion of the voice. He thought he had been alone, clearly he was mistaken.  
"Wha…WHO THE FUCK IS THERE!" He was met with silence. "Come on asshole. Where the fuck are you?" The floor creaked again. Dean quickly turned his head in the general direction of the noise.  
"Aren't you just full of piss and vinegar? You must've slept well." _Bray_. It was Bray's voice. God had he actually managed to find Bray?  
"Bray?" Dean licked his dry lips. "Holy shit is it you?" He was met with silence. "Come on I know you're here. Don't tell me I'm fucking dreaming again."  
"You're not dreaming." A smile crossed Dean's lips.  
"Jesus fuck **finally**!" Dean sleepily cleared his hair out of his face, squinting as he attempted to see Bray better. "Aren't you going to turn on a light or some shit like that? It's hard to…talk in the dark."  
"I want to know how you found this place." Dean blinked. "More importantly, I why know why you're here."  
"I think both would be kind of obvious. I mean…" He unashamedly rubbed the back of his head. "I had Evangeline's phone for like…" He thought about for a second. "I guess three days. I dunno it's all a little hazy. A lot of shit has happened since then. But she has your address in there. I tried to GPS it, but I could figure the fucking thing out. So I just kind of asked…around when I got here and they all steered me towards…here." He looked around the dark room. "Where ever here is. Then I got lost in the fucking woods, but its all cool cause I found you. You're here!" He gave Bray a smile, not that he saw it. "Now we can talk this shit out….Maybe with some sort of light?" Dean shrugged slightly. "Didn't come all this way to see you but not **see** you." Bray simply sighed, rolling his eyes. "Look this is your fault. You've been fucking ignoring me since you ditched me in that god damn parking lot." Dean paused for a second, clearing his throat. "I owe you a good shot to the face for that by the way. That was fucking cold."  
"You expected me to take you back to **him**?"  
"I expected you to hash this out with me."  
"There is nothing to _hash_ out." Dean shook his head, scooting his way to the end of the bed so he could be closer to Bray.  
"I get it alright. You loved me and I fucking hurt you. I have been nothing short of a complete dick to you." Dean squinted again, thinking that for a moment he may have found Bray's face in the darkness. "I'm sorry. I just so sorry." Dean gave him a pleading look, not that it did him any good. He doubted Bray could see it. "I don't want you to leave alright? We can fix this. I'll talk to Roman about…"  
"You think this can be _fixed_?" Dean nodded. "You think we can all live happily ever after like in a fairy tale?!" Dean flinched at Bray's tone. "I offered you **EVERYTHING** and you **REFUSED**."  
"I know! But we can fix it okay?" Dean heard Bray stomp toward him. A second later the larger man's hands roughly grabbed Dean by the arms, pulling him up from the bed. "I am not your toy." Bray's face was less an inch from Deans. The edge of Bray's beard was running along Dean's skin, tickling him. "I will **not** be forced to hang on to you simply to assuage your guilt." Bray pulled Dean closer, resting his forehead against Dean's. "You have made your choice. Now **live** with it." Dean felt himself get roughly thrown back onto the bed. In front of him he could hear Bray's rough breathing. He wanted to reach out to Bray, to try to calm him, but he didn't move. Everything inside of him told him to stay put.

They were both silent for a few minutes, Bray's ragged breathing slowly calming until it wasn't any louder than a whisper. "I've reached out to Angie." Dean gave him a questioning look. Who the hell was Angie? "She'll be here tomorrow to collect you."  
"And do what with me? I'm not going back out in that fucking swamp again."  
"I assume she'll be taking you to the next show." Show? Dean felt himself get more puzzled. Angie. He didn't know any Angies at work. Unless…  
"Wait, Angie…as in _Evangeline_?" Dean sat up, managing to find Bray's face in the dark. "You called Carrano's assistant on me?" Dean found himself offended by that. "I don't need a fucking baby sitter. If you want me to go, just tell me."  
"I would beg to differ. You came here without telling a soul. You've sent everyone around you in a panic because they can't find you. You've sent everyone around me into a panic because they did find you."  
"But that doesn't explain why she's coming. It's not her job to come pick me up."  
"I don't have to explain my reasons for calling her, just as she doesn't have to explain her reasons for coming. They are what they are." Dean shook his head.  
"Not uh. You don't just get to pass me off to a corporate lackey like that. We aren't done."  
"We are." Dean shook his head, quickly standing up. His plan had been to find a light, so he could at least see Bray. If Dean made visual contact, then there was a chance he could get the larger man to change his mind. It was a long shot, but he had hoped it could work. Unfortunately he never got the chance to try it. The second he got to his feet, a dizzy spell passed over him, forcing him back onto the bed.  
"Bray…" Dean reached out for him as he fought through the spell. He grasped at the darkness, desperately trying to find Bray.  
" **Stop**." Dean felt Bray's hand connect with his, slapping it away. "I won't be taken in by you any longer." Dean felt like he had been kicked in the gut by that.  
"If you make me go, I'll just come back. I'm not going to stop until you hear me out." Dean tried to stand again, finding that he made it to his feet with no after effects. "I fucked up alright?" He paused, swallowing hard before he continued. "You keep telling me to live with this choice I've made, but I can't. I won't lie and say I don't love Roman, because I do." Dean stumbled his way through the darkness, eventually finding Bray just a foot or so in front of him.

Bray didn't move when Dean threw his arms around him, he didn't even flinch. "But I love you too." Dean tightened his grip on Bray, laying his head on the larger man's shoulder. "I woke up in that parking lot…and I just….it was real. You fucking loving me was real." Dean choked back tears at that omission. "I was such an asshole because I was always worried about Roman. I never believed he actually could love someone like me." Dean shifted his gaze up to Bray's face. "Seth, Regal…my mom…all of them didn't love me like you do. Even Roman doesn't. When they all left, I didn't fight for them, because in the end it wasn't worth it too. But I'll fight for you."  
"Dean…" Bray's interjection gave Dean hope that maybe he was listening.  
"I will! I can fix this. It came to me in the parking lot. Just tell me what I have to do to keep you and I'll do it." Dean squeezed Bray as hard as he could. He didn't care that his desperation beginning to show. He'd come all this was to tell Bray the truth. He wasn't leaving until Bray heard it. "You want Roman gone? Then fine, he's gone. You want me to stay here with you? I'll do it." Dean could have sworn Bray closed his eyes for a moment, but he couldn't be sure. I was just too dark to tell. "If you want us to be together. We can be. It can be whatever you want."

Bray felt like he was standing in the middle of a bad dream. _It can be whatever you want_ kept echoing through his mind. Whatever he wanted. That hit every button imaginable. He could finally win. He could finally be rid of Roman. He could keep Dean until they were both dead. No one, not even Roman, would be able to do a thing about it. It was everything he wanted to hear, everything he could ever hope for. There was only one problem. Despite Dean's promises, it still wouldn't be real. Dean didn't love Bray like he claimed, he loved the attention that Bray gave him. He loved the idea of Bray, but at the end of it all he still wanted to climb in bed with Roman every night; and that would never change. "Bray?"

Feeling suffocated, Bray quickly grabbed Dean's arms, ripping the smaller man off of him. He couldn't stand the idea of Dean being anywhere near him. Quickly Bray crossed the room, hearing Dean's body hit the wood floor with a solid thud.  
"Enough." Bray found the light switch on the wall, finally granting Dean's request of turning on a light. The blond groaned at the sudden intrusion of the light. "I am **tired** of this." Bray watched Dean's shocked eyes as they snapped up to his face. "How dare you **invade** my home" Dean shook his head. "And offer me one of my fondest desires in some lame attempt to kept me on your leash!"  
"Bray..."  
"I said **enough**!" That silenced Dean. "You think you can fool me?" Bray let out an odd sort of laugh. "You think you're the first person to claim to love me?" He took a step towards Dean. "You think I can be swayed by sweet words and empty promises?" Bray paused licking his lips. "I have _seen_ love. I have _felt_ love and what you offer me is **not** love." Bray took another step towards Dean, slowly kneeling down in front of him. "Go back to Roman. He seems fine with being made a fool of." Bray stood back up, glaring down at Dean one last time. " **We're done**."


	7. Chapter 7

As Roman Reigns stands not so patiently near the Car Rentals Counters of the New Orleans Airport, he reflects on what had been the longest two days of his life. It had started when he had gone to Dean's lockeroom Tuesday night, with the hope of mending the awkward rift that had formed between them. He'd had a whole speech prepared about how he had been wrong, how forcing Dean to make a choice between himself and Bray had been wrong and about how sorry he was for it. If anything Roman had realized that like it or not, Dean needed both himself and Bray to function. They both helped the smaller man in ways that the other couldn't. It was beyond frustrating for all three of them, but it was the way it had to be. Roman had wanted to be understanding of it. He had wanted to show his support of Dean's residual friendship with Bray.

Unfortunately for Roman, that plan had gone straight to hell. When he had finally gotten the chance to stop by, he had been met with the unhappy news that Dean was _gone_. At first, Roman had taken it at face value. Why shouldn't he? There was no real threat anymore, Bray was gone; or at least he had thought Bray was gone. It hadn't been until Roman had found Dean's bag haphazardly shoved into the trunk of his rental car that he began to worry. Since then, all Roman could keep thinking was that he should have known better. Believing this was all over had been a mistake. Trusting Bray had been a mistake. Leaving Dean on his own had been a mistake. How many times had Bray played opossum to get what he wanted? Obviously this latest stunt wasn't any different. The only difficult part of it was that rather than taking Dean back to a hotel, it seemed that Bray had taken Dean _home_. That on its own had been a chilling thought. What had made it worse was the Roman had no idea where Bray's home was; at least he hadn't, until he found Carrano's assistant's phone in the bottom of Dean's bag.

Roman glanced up at the clock, slowly shaking his head. "Fucking come on." He pulled the phone out of his pocket, checking the reservation for the billionth time. "I know you're here." He looked back at the crowd of people. "So how about you just show up already." The person he was waiting for didn't comply. If anything the crowd seemed to get thicker, limiting his view. "Fuck." Of course this was going to be difficult. Everything concerning Bray was difficult.

He easily moved nearer to the counters to wait, momentarily taking his eyes off the crowd. He had wanted to be inconspicuous about this. He had been hoping to catch her and pull her off to the side so they could do this quietly. It would be easier if they could do this quietly. The last thing he wanted was to come all this way, only to lose her while he was forced to sign an autograph. Unluckily for him, he almost did lose her. Roman had been settling into his new spot when he just happened to look up at just the right moment. "There you are." The plain clothes had thrown him. He hadn't been expecting them. He was so used to the business attire she always wore, that the jeans, sneakers and a t-shirt were a perfect disguise for her. The only thing that had given her away that her hair was up in a bun.

They must've spotted each other at the same time, because he hadn't seen her a minute when she stopped dead in her tracks. She was a ways away, but he could still see the confusion that was written all over her face as she stared back at him. The confusion only grew as she quickly walked over to him, pausing just shy of where he was standing.  
"What are you doing here?" Roman raised an eyebrow to that. It was more of an accusation that an actual question. "Don't you have appearances or something?" He didn't, not this week anyway. He had gotten the lucky break of Bray taking Dean on his one off week.  
"Hello to you too. We need to talk." She gave him an annoyed glare.  
"You could've called." The eyebrow went up further. He wondered how she expected him to do that, seeing as he had her phone in his pocket. He almost asked that, but he thought better of it. He wasn't ready to play that card just yet.  
"This needs to be done face to face."  
"So you came all the way here to talk to me?" He nodded, giving her a sly little grin. That seemed to annoy her further. "I don't have _time_ to talk. I'm already behind schedule and someone's expecting me. If you want to talk, then make an appointment…."  
"I think it's going to be real difficult for me to make an appointment seeing as you don't have this." He pulled her phone out of his pocket, holding it up to her. The sight of it instantly silenced her. "And as for you being expected, well I'm sure Bray can wait his turn." He leaned in smirking at her. "I got here first."  
"Where did you get that?" She easily pointed at her phone.  
"Oh this?" He looked at the phone, drawing it out for a minute or two before he answered. "Funny thing about this. I went to apologize to Dean after the show the other night, and wouldn't you know it he was gone already. But he left this." He flipped the phone over, easily unlocking it with one swipe. "Just so you know, he took your password off." Roman missed the horror that was written all over her face. "By the way..." He continued to look through the phone, smiling when he found what he was looking for. "Before we do this." He turned the phone out so she could see it again, grinning from ear to ear at her vexed look. "Has any one told you that you look pretty sweet in a bikini?" She quickly went for the phone, but he easily pulled it away, tucking into his back pocket. "Hey now. None of that."  
"You….ASSHOLE! Give that back!" He held up his hand, giving her a semi stern look.  
"I think you've got that bun of yours wound just a little too tight. Where are your manners Evangeline...or should I call you…what is it Bray calls you?" He sarcastically thought about for a minute or so; infuriating her further. "What was it? Cologne…Columbia…Columbus…" He turned his hand in a mock gesture as he pretended to remember. "Oh wait I know….." He smacked his forehead. "Colombe. He calls you Colombe."

In response, she simply crossed her arms over her chest and glared at him with every ounce of contempt that she had in her. The stance and the glare did little to deter him from continuing on. He knew he wasn't doing himself any favors with her in the long run. After this was over, they all had to go back to work together. He was still going to have to see her on a regular basis. But asking her to help him, after he had figured out she was Bray's spy, just seemed to grate on him. "See, I thought it was a little odd. So I looked it up." He smiled at her again. "According to Google it means dove." Somehow the glare got harder.  
"Are you done?" Her tone was like acid.  
"Why does he call you dove…. _Angie_?" She rolled her eyes, sucking in her cheeks slightly.  
"Don't call me that."  
"What _Angie_? You don't like being called _Angie_? I thought that was your name… _Angie_."  
"Call me Angie one more fucking time and I will make sure that you go back home a few appendages short." He laughed. Part of him actually wanted to see her try.  
"Aw see, I don't think Mark would like that very much." He leaned in again. "He's already going to be super pissed about you lying about…well everything. Threatening talent though…." He clucked his tongue while he shook his head. "That'll probably get you fired." Her arms fell away from her body, her apparent frustration with him finally boiling to the surface.  
"Holy…What do you **want** Roman?!" She stamped her foot for some kind of emphasis.

He didn't answer her, not at first. He had to think about it for a moment. "I mean it Roman. I _need_ to go. Just tell me what you fucking want." He wasn't ready to force her to take him to Bray. Odds were she wouldn't. He needed to get her to back down a little before he dropped that bomb on her.  
"I want you to tell me the truth about why you're really here." She gave him an unreadable look, taking a step back from him.  
"It's none of your damn business why I'm here." He rolled his eyes.  
"Riiiiiiiiiight _personal_." Did air quotes around the word. "You're going to feed me that same lame ass excuse that you feed Carrano, aren't you?" He paused. "It was your Aunt right? Something about her being sick….or dead." He shrugged. "All I know is Mark sent a nice text this morning, telling you he hopes she gets well." She rolled her eyes again. "Oh and him letting you put your travel on the company? Nice perk."  
"You know what? Fuck you." She squared her shoulders, crossing her arms back over her chest. "I'm not telling you anything. I don't have to tell you anything, because I don't _answer_ to you."  
"Today you do." She gave him a slightly disgusted look. "See I've been through your phone. I know you've been in contact with Bray in the last few days. I know Bray has Dean." He leaned slightly. "And I know you're here to see Bray. So let's cut the crap." She gave him a sarcastic smile.  
"Fine by me."  
"You have no life outside of your job. It's going to really suck for you if I call Carrano and tell him what's really been going on."  
"Because you are obviously an authority on this situation."  
"I am. You lied to Mark about it. He doesn't know Dean's been kidnapped. He just thinks he's sick." Her face went through about six expressions, before it finally settled on stunned.  
"Kidnapped?! Who the fuck said he was kidnapped?!"  
"Why else would Dean be here? Bray took him Tuesday night and then he called you telling you to cover for both of them." Her arms fell away from her body as she expressed her frustration.  
"Oh my god." She pressed her fingers into her temples. "You. Fucking. **IDIOT!** " Roman was taken aback by that. He had been expecting her to confess that he was right, or at least stand down slightly. But neither happened. Instead she looked ready to rip his throat out with a spoon. "Dean hasn't been kidnapped and Bray is not holding him hostage. He left Tuesday night, and showed up at Bray's sometime Wednesday. **ON HIS OWN**."  
"Is that what Bray told you?"  
"Yes."  
"And you believed him?"  
"YES." She stepped closer to him, lowering her voice slightly. "He called me in a panic Wednesday night. He said Dean had been found near the house and he was in a bad way. He didn't know what to do, so he asked me to help. I told the company he was sick, because he was."  
"And you're hear now…."  
"To make sure Dean and Bray both go back to work Monday. Look…" She ran her hands over her face, letting them fall back to her side when she was done. "I get you think Dean's in trouble. Both he and Bray don't have the best track record when it comes to this sort of thing; but you need to stand down. You showing up is only going to make this worse for everyone. Just….go home or at the very least…go to a hotel here in the city. I'll make sure Dean calls you once we're out of there." He shook his head, not liking that suggestion one bit. He wasn't about sit idly by and wait on her to screw him over.  
"No. Not only no, but hell no. You're in on this. For all I know you told him where Dean was going to be." She gave him an incredulous look.  
"Really? Did you just listen to anything I just told you?"  
"Yea and I don't believe one fucking word of it." The look got worse. "So here's what we're going to do about it. You're going to take me out there." Her face went from one of disbelief to utter shock.  
"Are…you high?! I'm **not** taking you out there."  
"Oh I think you are." Her hands came up over her hair, tightening around her bun.  
"And why would I do that, hmmm? Do I look like I want to die today?" Her hands fell away again. "Because you realize that's what's going to happen when we both show up, don't you? Bray's going to think I fucked him over and he's going to have us killed where we stand." It was Roman's turn to be skeptical.  
"I think you're being a tad over dramatic." She shook her head no. "You're going to take me out there to keep me quiet. Do this and I'll forget you were ever apart of it. I'll keep my focus on Bray. Refuse and I let it slip to _everyone_ what you've really been up too. I may even pass that bikini picture around too." He shrugged. "I haven't decided yet. But even if I don't, how long do you think it's going to take them to fire your ass for the other stuff?" She shook her head no again, wilting slightly.  
"You….you can't do this."  
"Oh I can." He gave her a smirk. "What do you say Ann…" One glace made him think better of what he was about to say. "Evangeline. Are you going to help or do I need to give you a ride to the unemployment office?"

She stood there glaring at him for a moment. He had her stuck between a rock and a hard place. Realistically, she could afford to lose her job. It would be difficult, but it wouldn't be anything she hadn't faced before. She had enough saved to be alright for a while. What worried her were the rumors he was threatening to start. They were the kind of thing that would follow her everywhere she went, especially in the small sphere that was the executive level. They would mark her as incompetent and untrustworthy. Not the ideal words one wanted to be associated with when they were looking for a new job.  
"Fuck….Fine. I'll take you out there." He smiled at her. "But once we get there we're done. Anything that happens after that is on you." He threw up his hands.  
"Finally. Was that really so damn hard?" She gave him a contemptuous smile.  
"Yes it was, it **_really_** was. But since we've come to an agreement, maybe you can give me my phone back." She held out her hand, expecting him to hand it over.  
"Why? So you can call and warn him?"  
"So I can call and tell him that I'm here. I didn't have a flight when I talked to him last. I just told him I would let him know I was here." She gestured at the area around her. "But it probably won't hurt to tell him you're here either. He might not be so upset about it if he knows." She absently scratched her forehead. "Hell he may just meet us at the front gate _with_ Dean." Roman shook his head not liking the sound of that.  
"Not uh. No phone until we get there." She closed her eyes, grinding her teeth slightly. "Everything else I'm fine with." She opened her eyes slightly, keeping them narrowed so she could shoot an irritated glare at him.  
"I really hope someone kicks the sense god gave you, into you when we get there."  
"Nice. Are we going to go or are you just going to glower at me all morning?" She gestured to something behind him, probably the door, indicating they could go.

Roman nodded, easily stepping out of her way so she could move along with him in tow. She darted away from him, putting a healthy distance between him and her. He imagined the distance was needed, for both of their sakes. The car ride was already going to be awkward enough, without him pissing her off even further; not that he really cared. In his mind she could get over it. He was along for the ride, whether she whether she liked it or not.


	8. Chapter 8

One very tense car ride later, Roman sat in the passenger seat, watching the Louisiana country side drift by. Try as he might, Roman couldn't hide how awkward he felt about the entire situation. He knew he had been too rough on her at the airport. At the time he had told himself it was the only way, that she was just a means to an end. But after cooler heads had prevailed, he realized she was just trying to help. "Look about earlier…I…didn't mean to be…I'm just really worried about Dean." Roman brought his hand up, sheepishly rubbing the back of his head. "It means a lot that you're helping." Evangeline just shrugged, keeping her eyes on the road. It was obvious that he wasn't forgiven just yet. "So uh…how long till we get there?" She smacked her lips, indicating she wasn't feeling chatty, but she answered him all the same.  
"Why don't you look it up? After all, you've got my phone. It's pretty obvious that both you and Dean have no problem going through it." The acid in her voice made him cringe. "I'm sure you can map it."  
"Look about that, I'm sorry. I was worried…"  
"And that gives you the right to go through my things? You realize I have sensitive information on that thing right? Information that you're not supposed to know." He cut her off, hoping to end this before she left him to die in a swamp.  
"And I didn't read any of it." Except for how much everyone made. "I was just trying to find Dean."  
"Right, because my personal photos were obviously going to lead you to Dean." Roman cringed again. Okay, maybe he had gone a little far on that one. "Did it ever occur to you that Dean left on his own? That he doesn't want to be found? Did you even think of that?" Of course he hadn't. He'd only considered the possibility of Bray had taking Dean. To him, the only logical reason was that Bray had forced Dean to go with him. He couldn't fathom the idea that Dean had left him for Bray, not after everything they had been through.  
"God this whole damn thing is a mess." Roman couldn't agree more. "So help me I'm going to smack **both** of them when we get there."

Out of the corner of his eye, Roman saw Evangeline tiredly rub her eyes. She had probably been up just as long as he had, and he was sure the stress of him showing up unannounced hadn't helped her one bit.  
"You're tired. I can drive for a while if you want." She shook her head, resting her hand back on the window sill of the car.  
"You don't know how to get there."  
"The address is in there." He gestured to her phone. "As you said I could just map it." Again she shook her head no.  
"It won't come up. The address is a general location. It's really just a reference point for the compound. Only way to get to it is to either be shown how to find it or know how to find it." Roman furrowed his brow slightly. How would she know how to find it? "To answer your earlier question, the edge of the compound isn't that much further. But someone have to take us in. Since you wouldn't let me call at the airport, we may have to wait for one of them to wander up once we get there."  
"Is an escort necessary?"  
"It isn't necessary, but it's not exactly wise to walk around that place unescorted. It would be difficult to get back to Bray unseen." Roman didn't like the sound of that. He had been under the impression that the house was near the road. At least that's what he remembered from the videos. He had thought that all they needed to do was roll up, grab Dean and roll out. Apparently that wasn't the case. It worried him that there was no easy in and no easy out. That meant they were all at Bray's mercy once they were on the property.  
"I thought it was just the one house. How big is this place?" Evangeline glanced over at him as she responded.  
"Big. That house is just the start of it all."  
"Bray knows we're…" She cut him off.  
"Bray knows I'm coming. He doesn't know about **you**." He detected the irritation in her voice. Roman was starting to think it might have been a bad idea to refuse her request to call Bray earlier. It dawned on him that she had been sincere in her need to protect him, to protect both of them from Bray and his wrath. "I will need to call when get there. Hopefully it will be Luke that meets us." Roman raised an eyebrow to that. "I can explain what's going on to him and with any luck he'll smooth it out. If not then you may have to wait by the road." Roman's head snapped in her direction.  
"What?" He began shaking his head. "Not uh. You go in, I go in. That's the deal."

Evangeline slammed on the breaks, bringing the car to a sudden stop. Roman had to quickly brace himself so he didn't go face first into the dash. The sheer force of the car coming to a stop unnerved him. That feeling only got worse when Evangeline easily turned away from the wheel, glaring at him with all her might. She looked ready to set him ablaze with just her eyes.  
"Are you intentionally stupid or are you just playing at it?" Roman didn't know how to answer that. "I know you think you know what's going on here, but you don't. This isn't work. Bray isn't going to chasten himself for the sake of his job. He won't stop the boys or any other member of his family from doing extreme bodily harm to us, especially if **any** of them feel he's in danger. These people are **dangerous** Roman. Bray is **dangerous**." Roman furrowed his brow at that. How did she know whether they were dangerous or not? Same went for the size of the place or even how to find it from memory. She would have had to have been here before to know that, and as far as he knew, she hadn't. Then there was the whole Luke comment from before. Why would Harper do anything for her? Why had Bray even asked her to come? Something wasn't adding up. "Please just listen to me on this. If they tell you to stay, just stay. Bray is beyond eager to get rid of Dean. Same goes for everyone else there. Unless Dean refuses to go, we won't have any problem getting him out of there. Then y'all can go on your merry way." An awkward silence fell between them for a moment.  
"How do you know so much about it?" He had caught her off guard with that one.  
"What?"  
"Bray. How do you know so much?" She let out an exasperated sigh, quickly offering a bullshit excuse.  
"I'm Mark's assistant. It's my…."  
"It's not your job to know the population size and disposition of the natives. It's not your job to lie for him. You've been covering for him ever since he left, why?" She turned back, not offering him answer. "How do you know he wants to get rid of Dean?" She answered him, her voice considerably calmer than it had been before.  
"Because he told me when he asked me to come down here. He said that Dean was here and he wanted him gone."  
"And you believed him?"  
"Why would he lie? If Bray had a scheme to lure Dean here then why would he tell anyone, especially the company, where to find him? More importantly why would he want him gone?" Roman couldn't argue with that. "If Bray wanted to take Dean, then he wouldn't wait for Dean to go home. It's too far to go. He would either take him on the road, or he would have done it the night Bray left." Again Roman couldn't argue. "I know you think this is all a trap, but it's not. Bray didn't kidnap Dean. He's not holding him hostage. If anything, it's the other way around."  
"How do I know that? You're obviously in on all of this. You've been lying for Bray for weeks, you lied to Carrano about where you were going and for all I know you're lying to me too."  
"I also lied for Dean." That made Roman pause. "I'm not proud of lying. I hate to do it, but I didn't have any other choice. The company would be furious if they found out about Dean playing hookie. Bray asked me to cover for Dean because he didn't have any other choice. The last thing Bray wants is company officials or the police…"  
"Or me." She paused, nodding slightly.  
"Or you turning up unannounced. He thought he could get Dean out of the house before anyone was the wiser."  
"But…"  
"It didn't work out like he wanted. First Dean was sick, but now he's refusing to leave. "  
"So is that where you come in?" Again she nodded.  
"Basically."  
"So Bray didn't invite you?" She hesitated, looking away for a moment before she continued.  
"It's a long story." He went to interrupt her, but she never gave him the chance too. "One that I'm not inclined to tell right now. Let's just say it's complicated and leave it at that." He didn't want to drop it, but he also didn't want to sit here any longer than they had too. "Look, let's just get there and get this over with. Okay?" He threw up his hands, not wanting to argue with her.  
"Fine." He hated to not have all the facts, especially since Evangeline was the wild card in all of this. But there was no other choice at this point. It wasn't like he was going to luck upon someone else who was willing to drop him at Bray's front door anytime soon; so for now, he just dropped it. If it got him to where he needed to be, then she could be mysterious till the cows came home. Dean was his priority and in his mind the sooner he got to Dean, the better.


	9. Chapter 9

Luke stood there, watching Evangeline emerge from the car. Bray was going to be beyond pleased that she was finally here. He had been pacing around like a caged animal all morning, voicing his concerns that she had changed her mind. He had continued to site her lack of calling as his main reason for worrying. Luke had done his best to assure Bray that wasn't the case. He had even called the airline to confirm that she had gotten on the plane. The news that she had, had done little to calm Bray. She still hadn't called and Bray's fears weren't going to be quelled until she did. He had already begun to wonder if she had changed her mind mid trip and gone back to Connecticut. Thankfully she hadn't. Thankfully she had finally called. Thankfully she was here. But that was all they could be thankful for. The thing he wasn't thankful for, was staring back at him through the windshield of the car.

It wasn't a surprise Roman had come. Bray had been expecting him for at least a day. The surprise was how it had happened. It had never occurred to any of them that he would use Evangeline to find them. Worse than that, Bray had no idea he was here. Evangeline hadn't called till she was at the gate. More so, Luke hadn't been able to find Bray prior to coming up. According to Erick he was making himself scarce until Evangeline arrived. The word had been left with Erick that both Evangeline and Roman were here, but Luke doubted Erick would ever get it to Bray. The last thing Luke wanted was for Bray to find out last minute. He knew the news of Roman arriving with Evangeline was going to sour her visit quicker than any of them could blink. He hated the idea of that, but there was nothing he could do to stop it.

Evangeline stepped away from the car, catching his attention again. She was moving slowly, her hands held where he could clearly see them. It was obvious to him that she was doing her best not to appear threatening to him. In his mind, it was a sign of respect. She knew they were dangerous, more importantly she understood that danger. She was showing it the respect it deserved. It was a very clear signal that she wanted this to go down as peacefully as possible. While Luke appreciated the sentiment of it, he knew the real threat was still in the car. He also knew Roman wasn't going to be inclined to anything peaceful.  
"Morning Luke. Good to see you." Luke nodded slightly.  
"Angie." He paused, taking a deep breath before he continued. "I thought Bray made you clear on the rules." She gave him a strained smile.  
"Believe me, it wasn't my idea for him to come along. I wanted to call you earlier, but he wouldn't let me. I only got my phone back once we got here." That explained some of it, but not all.  
"How did he get here?" Evangeline swallowed, lowering her hands slightly.  
"He was here when I got here. I told him to go home, but he refused. He made me bring him along." Luke didn't doubt that part of it. That didn't mean that Bray was going to be any less pleased about it. "All he wants is Dean. He's just going to take him and leave." That was welcomed news, but it didn't exactly help. Dean was being less than cooperative. Luke had been ready to throw him out the second the smaller man had been fit to stand, but Bray had refused. Dean knew how to find them now. There was nothing stopping him from coming right back.  
"The rat is refusing to leave."  
"Bray told me." She brushed a few stray hairs out of her face. "I think he'll go if he sees Roman. If I vouch for him, can he come with me?" Luke easily shook his head.  
"He can't be trusted." She nodded again, the strained look returning.  
"Can he stay in the front house for the time being? It's not likely he'll stay in the car and I don't want anything to happen to him in the meantime." Again Luke said no. He made it clear Roman needed to stay where he was.

Evangeline nodded a third time, slowly turning back to the car. She gestured to Roman, who got the hint. He quickly emerged, giving her an expectant look.  
"Well?"  
"You have to stay here for now." That was not the news Roman wanted to hear. "I'll see if I can bring Dean up first thing so y'all two can go ahead and go." She looked back over at Luke. "Y'all can take me back to the airport on Friday, right?" Luke smirked, not indicating yes or no on that one.  
"That's up to Bray." She looked like she didn't like the sound of that.  
"Is keeping me here up to Bray too?" They both looked at Roman, who was easily stomping over towards them.  
"Roman we…"  
"I know what you fucking told me in the car woman." The smirk quickly fell, followed by Luke narrowing his eyes at that. Roman's tone wasn't a pleasant one.  
"I would watch my mouth regarding her. Bray.."  
"I could give a fuck about her or Bray." He came face to face with Harper. "If I can't come with her, then I want to hear it from Bray, not from one of his lackeys." Luke's eyes narrowed even further. A low growl rumbled from his throat, causing Evangeline to quickly step between them.  
"Gentleman please; there's no need to get violent here." She reached up, easily planting an elbow against Roman's chest, forcing him to back up. "Let's all play nice."

Roman didn't want to play nice. He wanted to find Dean. While he had taken Evangeline's warning to heart, he wasn't planning on heeding it. Especially when Harper was making the decision for Bray. To Roman, being denied entry was proof that Bray was holding Dean hostage. They were purposely being kept apart and that was something Roman wasn't planning on standing for. If they wouldn't let him in, fine. That just meant he had to beat every last one of them down until he got to Dean.  
"He's the one that seems interested in taking this farther. I'm happy to oblige him." Another smirk came across Harper's lips. "So are my brothers." Roman tried to push forward.  
"Go ahead and bring the whole damn state. I'll….." But one very solid shot to the diaphragm from Evangeline's elbow ended that quicker than he could blink.  
" **STOP** " Evangeline pushed her way further between them trying her best to act as a barrier. "No violence." She turned to look up at Luke before she faced Roman again. "From either of you. Let's just all…. Calm down." She waited a few seconds, making sure they were both listening before she continued. "Roman I know you don't trust them, but trust me." Roman wanted to laugh, but he couldn't catch enough breath too.  
"You…you want me to trust you, after you've lied to my face?" He was able to catch more of his breath. "You're fucking whacked!" Roman stepped toward her, leaning down slightly. "You feed me some sob story in the car about how complicated this shit is, but it's not." Out of the corner of his eye, Roman saw Luke put a hand on her shoulder, pulling her back. "You're in bed with them."  
"I'm…" Roman cut her off.  
"You are! Don't fucking lie to me." He quickly gestured to Luke's hand. "He's fucking protecting you. Fuck..." He laughed again. "It all makes sense." She tried to protest again, but Roman cut her off again. "How would you know everything you know about them if you weren't? Why else would Bray call _you_?" She rolled her eyes at that. "I see how all of this works. He needs something, so he calls his little spy in corporate. You two play a little patty cake and then you get it for him."  
"I'm not a spy Roman."  
"Oh I think you are." He took another step towards her. "You know what else I think." He started to reach for her. "I think that if I can't go….." Roman hadn't gotten a finger on her when he felt someone grab him by the back of the head and yank him back with all the force they could muster. For a split second, he saw Luke push Evangeline behind him and glimpse of Rowan's beard before he went face first into the front of the car. His entire world going dark.


	10. Chapter 10

Once upon a time it had been a splendid house. It hadn't had rotting shingles over the now dingy grey siding. There hadn't been pieces of tin covering some of the holes left from the siding that had fallen away, while other holes were left exposed to the elements. The front porch hadn't sagged to the point of near collapse and the multiple layers of shingles on the roof weren't peeling away. At one time, it had been a grand house. Now it was just a sad shadow of its former self. Slowly decaying, just like the rest of the property.

On the way in, Evangeline had seen marginal efforts for improvement. Most of the overgrowth had been cut back from the road, making it easier for them to navigate their way up to the main house. The smaller houses toward the front had been sloppily painted on the sides visible to the road, with weeds replacing flowers in the front planting beds. Even now as she stared at the main house, she could smell the freshly cut grass as it hung in the late morning air. She took it as Bray's intent to put his best foot forward. It was clear that he wanted to make the most of this visit. If she had been able to feel at that point, she would have felt flattered.

Unfortunately for Bray, the effort was wasted. She had gone numb shortly after Roman's attempt to grab her. That on its own had been too much to process. Never in her wildest dreams did she ever think he would do something like that. She had always thought he was better than that. Obviously his desperation to find Dean had brought out what kind of man he really was. To her, it had been marginally disappointing, but not heartbreaking. She found herself unable to really care about it.

Then there was the rest of it. This whole day was like some sort of bad dream that she just couldn't wake up from. Everywhere she looked, she saw ghosts. Ghosts of a life that she'd run very far away from. Ghosts of a past that she had desperately tried to forget. She had pushed it all down inside of herself, repressing it with a mixture of work, alcohol and a lukewarm outer shell that drove everyone away. The mixture had been effective. It had allowed her a decent life, free from the emotions that were now bubbling up inside her. It made it easy to tell everyone that she was fine when she wasn't. It stopped the perpetual feeling that she was drowning. Thankfully, Luke had sensed something was wrong. She wasn't sure whether it had been Roman's actions, or the fact that he probably knew, but he opted to drive them in; citing that she simply wasn't in any sort of mind to drive. He had been right. She wasn't in any sort of mind to handle any of it, but she was here all the same. Now as she stood before the house, all she could manage to do was blindly stare it at. The drowning feeling getting worse with every second that past. There was no running away now. There was no work to bury herself in. No alcohol to numb herself with. No shell to hide behind anymore. She was _here_.

"God….what a shit hole." The intrusion of Roman's voice shattered her little world. It slowly brought her back to reality, pulling her from the numbness that she had been feeling up until that point. Evangeline turned, seeing Roman limply hanging over Erick's shoulders. He'd woken up about half way into the compound, whining about everything but the weather. She couldn't blame him for it, but she wasn't exactly sympathetic. He wouldn't be in misery if he had just listened to her at the airport. In response, Erick bucked his shoulders, obviously not liking Roman's comment about his home. "Hey! Watch it asshole." Erick did it again, mainly for fun, but also to make it clear that Roman needed to mind his manners. "Hey _Angie_ …." Clearly the message wasn't received. "Tell your boys to be careful." Erick bucked him a third time, nearly throwing Roman back into the car. The smaller man jerked back, narrowly avoiding his head slamming against the car's roof.  
"We're **not** hers." Erick turned his head, glaring at what he could see of Roman's face. "Leave. Her. Alone."  
"We should've left him for the gators." She turned again seeing Luke walking around the front of the car. "You're lucky we both like you." He winked at her as he brushed past, heading for the trunk, smacking Roman on the head as he went. Roman protested, but one look from Erick stopped that.

To Evangeline, there was no like about it. The idea of leaving Roman unconscious on the side of the road would've sent Bray through what was left of the roof. Erick knew it and so did Luke. All it would take was for someone to see him or for him to flag someone down, and trouble would be on their doorstep faster than any of them could blink.  
"It's gonna be okay Angie." She jumped slightly, not realizing Erick had moved closer. He reached out, gently placing his hand on her head. "You'll be okay." He patted her head as a sign of encouragement. She appreciated the sentiment, but she doubted she would be.  
"Why are you fucking worried about her? I'm the one that got thrown into the car." Roman glared down at her, knocking Erick's hand off her head. She jumped back not entirely sure if Roman had been aiming for Erick or her.  
"And if you don't shut the fuck up." Luke's voice quickly cut in, sounding about as angry as Erick looked. "I'm going to put you back into that car and send it straight into the swamp!" A second later she heard the trunk slam shut. She turned, seeing Luke walk towards her with her suitcase in his hand. She watched Luke's gaze shift from Roman's face to what she guess was Erick's. "I think he needs to rest." Luke reached up, easily scratching his nose. "Put him with the other one for the time being. They can play catch up while they wait for Bray to decide on what's best."  
"I'll tell you what's best you….." That was quickly followed by a sound smack to the head from Luke. "Get him inside before I kill him." From what she gathered Erick didn't nod. He didn't indicate that he'd heard Luke at all. Evangeline just heard him shuffle off, Roman continuing to bitch the whole way.

There was a long pause before Luke spoke again. It seemed to her that he needed a minute or two to collect his thoughts before he addressed whatever was next. She envied him for that. She wished she could do the same. "You alright?" His voice was softer, gentler even. "I saw you getting all misty eyed in the car on the way in. Seems to be worse now." She looked away, realizing for the first time that the mist had turned into tears, and those tears were now tumbling at a liberated pace. "I won't pretend to not know what it's about." She nodded, realizing that Bray had probably told Luke everything. It wasn't a shock. They shared everything. It made sense that Bray would have shared this as well.  
"Where is he?" She quickly changed the subject, not wanting to have a heart to heart with him about it.  
"Around." He wiped his nose again, sniffling slightly. "He's been a bit anxious about you coming." He wasn't the only one. To Evangeline, it was a relief he wasn't here. After everything that had happened today, she just didn't have it in her to deal with Bray right now. "If you want him, I'm sure he can be found." She quickly shook her head no.  
"I'm fine….thank you." She reached up, wiping away some of the tears with the back of her hand. "I think" She swallowed hard, finding it difficult to form a sentence. "I think I'd like to lay down for a bit." She saw Luke cock an eyebrow out of the corner of her eye. "Could that be possible?" She looked up at him again. "Please?" Her voice sounded so small, so weak. She wasn't entirely sure it was really hers. It sounded more like a child's. "I just need…space…for a while." She swallowed again. "Somewhere, where I can shut the world out for a bit. I think I can handle this…handle him if I can just be on my own for a while."  
"He won't like it." She didn't really care. "But I think I can distract him. Seems there's other things that need his attention more than you. No offense." She managed a small smile. Indicting none had been taken.

There was an awkward pause between them, Luke taking another moment to compose himself before he continued on. "You shouldn't worry about it." She gave him an inquisitive look, thinking for a second that she didn't know what he was talking about. "Roman." He nodded in the direction of the house as the name passed his lips. "Don't worry about what he may or may not know. He can't render an opinion on your past any more than you can on his." Evangeline shook her head.  
"It's not what he knows that worries me. It's what he thinks he knows that worries me." She felt tears begin to sting her eyes again. "You heard him. He all but accused me of being Bray's rat." She let out a shaky sigh. "Why would he bother with the truth when the half-truth is so much better?" She ran her fingers over her hair in frustration. "He even wasn't supposed to be here. I told him to wait at the airport and then I told him to wait in the car. I told him Bray would be happy to get rid of Dean, but he just…wouldn't listen to me. Now he thinks he knows something and I'm **screwed**." A few tears fell. "What am I supposed to do when this all goes to hell?" He didn't answer her. "We all know how this works. None of you are at risk for any real punishment. At most you'll get fined. But me? The second Roman says something they will fire me." She swallowed hard, finding it hard to speak for a moment. "It's easy for you, for Erick…..for Bray to not worry about rumors. You have each other, or at most, you have Bray to protect you." She let out a short laugh. "I don't have anybody."  
"You have us." He'd said so quickly and so matter-of-factly, that she wasn't sure she heard him right.  
"What?" Luke stepped closer to her, leaning down slightly so he could look her right in the eye.  
"If it comes down to that, then we'll protect you. He won't let anything bad happen to you because of this."  
"You don't know that." He shook his head.  
"I do. We pay our debts Angie. Good, Bad or indifferent, they always get paid." He laid his hand on her shoulder, giving it a squeeze. "Trust me."


	11. Chapter 11

Dean laid on the bed tiredly staring up at the ceiling. He hated being bored about as much as he hated waiting and here he was doing both. It didn't help that Bray had disappeared or that the house was completely still. It certainly didn't help that he had completely failed in his purpose for coming here. While he had been genuine in his feelings, it had been too little too late. Now here he was, dismissed from Bray's sight and waiting to be collected like a bag of trash. It was humiliating. "Fuck."

He threw his legs over the side of the bed, managing to bring himself upright. It was just too difficult to lay there for any longer, not without having something to do. He was about to see if he could find Bray one last time when he was stopped by the sound of the stairs creaking. Someone was coming. The creak was followed by a voice, a voice that didn't belong to anyone in Bray's family. "It can't be." He was hearing things. He had to be. The voice sounded like Romans, but there was no way it could be Roman's. Dean hadn't seen him before he had left. The only indication he had given was shoving his stuff in Roman's car. There was no way he could have found him based on that.

Slowly standing, Dean moved away from the bed, hearing the stairs creaked again. The creak was louder this time, and so was the voice. His eyes got wide at it, his breathing becoming shallow. "No." As much as he wanted to be, Dean wasn't hearing things. The voice was definitely Roman's. Somehow, some way, Roman was here. "Fucking…fuck!" Dean went for the door, but the voice ebbing from right outside of it stopped him cold his tracks. He was caught, worse than that, he was trapped. Roman had known where to go and like it or not, Dean was about to be found. He numbly stood there, watching as the knob began to turn. His heart began pounding in his ears, muffling the sound of Roman's voice as it pierced the silence of the room when the door finally opened.  
"Where the fuck are you taking me you over grown Cabbage Patch Kid?" Dean watched Erick emerge from the dark hallway, Roman's wilted body hanging over his shoulders. "You're all lucky you threw me into that car otherwise I'd be fucking every last one of you up right now." Erick only grunted, obviously annoyed with Roman's attitude.  
"I think this is yours." Dean blinked, realizing that statement was meant for him.  
"This isn't…"  
"Roman?" He snapped his head in Dean's direction, his eyes falling on Dean for the first time. " **DEAN!** "

Erick brushed past him, Roman turning his head again so he could keep his eyes firmly fixed on Dean. "Put me down asshole." He started to weakly struggle against Erick's grip. The ginger obviously didn't appreciate the sudden need to get down. But he granted Roman's wish all the same by tossing the smaller man onto the bed without much care on how he landed. "Ro?" Dean's eyes wildly shifted from the bed, to Erick and back to the bed again. They took in the sight of Roman's bruised and bloodied face, unable to register what they saw. "What…what happened?!" He looked at Erick, hoping the dopey giant would offer some insight; he didn't. Instead he acted as if the question hadn't even been asked.  
"You both need to stay here until Bray comes to see you."  
"I'm not waiting on his stupid ass. Go get Angie and tell that lying bitch we're both ready to _go_." Dean raised an eyebrow to that. Obviously he had missed something.  
"Angie needs her space and so do you." Roman got an exasperated look on his face. "Stay here or we won't be responsible for what happens to you, both of you." The taller man looked at Dean when he stated the last part. It was clear he wasn't in Bray's good graces anymore and Roman certainly wasn't. Their only protection from the rest of the family was the room they were currently in. Dean swallowed, quickly nodding. He wasn't going to bother mincing words with the giant, not when Roman was sitting three feet behind him.  
Accepting Dean's nod as a firm yes, Erick quietly shuffled his way out of the door, his hand pulling the door closed behind him.  
"Thanks for the broken nose." The door fully closed with a click. "Asshole."

Dean turned back to Roman, seeing the larger man sitting on the edge of the bed. "Fucker threw me into the hood of the rental car when we got here." Dean blinked, unsure of what to think about that. He hadn't been here long, but he knew Erick didn't do anything without either a nod from Bray or imminent danger. Seeing as Bray was nowhere to be found, Dean had to wonder what Roman had done to make Erick think he was dangerous. "Harper was no goddamn help either. He just stood protecting Angie the whole time." Roman brought his hand up to wipe away some of the dried blood on his face. "I was only playing at grabbing her." Dean blinked again, not liking the sound of that. By her, he assumed Roman meant Angie.  
"You grabbed her?"  
"Tried too." He shrugged. "They weren't going to let me onto the property and I wasn't about to let the only piece of leverage I had go." _Leverage_. Part of Dean didn't like Roman viewing Angie as nothing more than a pawn. This wasn't a game. "I hadn't even touched her and WHAM! That big fucker just came out of nowhere and sent me flying. It wasn't like I was going to hurt her."  
"He didn't know that." Roman looked up at him, slightly stunned at that response.  
"You…"Roman let out a small laugh. "You're taking his side in this?" Dean rolled his eyes. "What the fuck man? How badly has Wyatt screwed you up since he's had you?" _Had_. Dean didn't like the implication of that word. "Fuck Dean, I came here to **get** your ass after he **took** you and you're sympathizing with them?" Dean quickly started to shake his head no. He definitely didn't like where this was headed.  
"I ain't sympathizing with shit." Roman seemed slightly taken aback by that. "You've got it all wrong. He didn't fucking take me Ro." Roman let out another chuckle.  
"Right he…"  
" **I fucking mean it!** " That shut Roman up. "He didn't take me. I stole Evangeline's phone and I used it to find Bray." Dean used the back of his hand to wipe his nose. " **I came here on my own.** " Roman gave him an unsure look.  
"Why? He told you…"  
" **Because I fucking love him!** " Dean slowly began to rub his collar bone in frustration. "He wouldn't fucking talk to me." He rubbed harder. "All I wanted was to tell him I loved him." Roman didn't like that statement. "I called, I emailed, I tweeted and fucking nothing! So I did what I had to. I came here."  
"Why? We went over this. He told you he was done. He _left_."  
"I thought I could get him to come back with me. I was convinced he would be so happy to see me, that me coming here would prove that I loved him. I thought it would be enough to convince him to come back." He liked that one even less. "I told him I would do whatever he wanted. I _begged_ him to let me stay." Despite his injuries, Roman stood up, glaring at Dean.  
"You fucking did **WHAT?!** " Dean flinched. "Do you even know what that means?"  
"Yea. I fucking told him I'd leave you for him." Roman's jaw dropped in shock. "I told…." Dean didn't get to finish the rest of his statement. The next thing he saw was Roman's fist flying at his face. The next thing he felt was Roman's fist connecting with his jaw, sending shock waves through his face.

Roman stood over Dean, watching him crumple to the floor in a heap. He hadn't been able to stop himself. Something inside him had snapped and he hadn't been able stop the rage that was pulsing through him. He couldn't ignore the truth any longer; not when it was staring him so plainly in the face. _Dean had left him_. He had left him _for_ Bray. After everything they had been through; the long nights on the road, the wars with the authority…. _Seth's betrayal_ , it hadn't been enough. Dean had decided he loved Bray more. He had come here to stay with Bray. Roman couldn't just stand it. He couldn't stand losing to that crazy fuck. Roman sucked in a ragged breath, stumbling back towards the bed. He felt dizzy, no worse than that, he felt like he was going to be sick. He collapsed on to the bed in a heap, the mattress screeching in protest, straining under his weight. How could this have happened? How could that cracked bastard have won? It just didn't make sense to him.

Bringing a shaky hand up, Roman clearly some of his hair out his face. He had only just become aware of its presence. Below him, he heard Dean groan. He dropped his eyes to the floor, watching the smaller man as he slowly began to roll over.  
"Ow!" Dean sat up, his hand rubbing his jaw. "Fuck me man."  
"How could you?" The blonde looked up at him. "After everything, how could you?" Roman felt himself barely able to hold onto the rage that was still pulsing through him. "I gave you everything you could ever ask of me. I loved you unconditionally. How could that not be enough?"  
"Me choosing between you and Bray seems like a pretty big condition." Roman's jaw tightened in utter annoyance. "Me never seeing Bray again seems like another one." Roman felt ready to sock him in the mouth again, but he didn't. This time he was able to hold his temper. Once was enough.  
"He forced…."  
"You forced that." Dean licked his lips. "For all of Bray's faults, for all the times he's wished you were gone, he **always** understood why I needed you around."  
"You believe that? He was wedge between us, he still is"  
"He never forced me to choose." Roman scoffed. "He didn't because he knew he would lose."  
"Well he doesn't have to worry about losing here, does he? You obviously offered yourself up to him." _Like a whore._ "I'm sure he was very happy to accept. Is he going to keep you barefoot in the kitchen with the other women or will he treat you like a man and let you play outside?" The hurt look on Dean's face made Roman regret that the second it had left his mouth. He hadn't meant it to be as cruel as it had sounded, but again he hadn't been able to stop himself. He wanted Dean to hurt as much as he did. "Neither." The smaller man let his hand weakly fall away from his jaw. "He told me to go back to you."

Roman found himself feeling worse. It figured Bray would say that. "He said what I offered him wasn't love and that I should go back to you." Dean looked down at his feet in shame, sniffling. "I came here to try and fix everything." Roman sat there, thinking for a second that he saw tears brimming in Dean's blue eyes. "But I only managed to fuck things up worse." Dean stomped the floor in frustration. "I've lost Bray and now I've fucked everything up so bad with you that you're probably going to leave me too." Dean's fingers laced their way into his hair. "I can't fucking win!" Roman sighed, his fingers absently toying the folds in his jeans. He should leave. After all, Dean had left him for someone else. He hadn't even bothered to tell Roman he was leaving. He just vanished without a trace. But Roman couldn't deny his own blame in the entire situation. He had made Dean choose. He had decided having Dean all to himself was more important than his friends needs. Most of all, after reaching out to him for help, Roman had ignored Dean because he simply couldn't handle the truth. Dean had needed him and he had let him down.  
"Let me ask you something; man to man." Dean looked up at him, his hands easily wiping the tears away. "Would you have done this if I hadn't acted like a dick last week?"  
"Probably not. Stupid thing was I thought about asking you to help me, but you were still giving me the silent treatment." He shrugged. "So I decided it was better to do it on my own." That felt like a kick to the gut.  
"Fuck." Roman dropped his head into his hands, his thumbs rubbing his temples. Had Dean fucked up? Sure. But so had he. The silver lining in all of this was that Bray had officially sent Dean packing. Roman couldn't help but be a little happy about that. He couldn't deny that he at least wanted to try to work things out, if for nothing else then to have a life that didn't involve sharing Dean with Bray Wyatt. "Alright look." Roman lifted his head up, looking at Dean again. "I'm man enough to admit we're not completely fucked." Dean raised a surprised eyebrow. "I'm mad as hell at you, for this and things aren't going to be okay overnight." Dean nodded, obviously understanding. "But we're not fucked." Roman swallowed. "Just let me rest up for a while. We can talk about the rest of it when we get home. Deal?"  
"Deal."


	12. Chapter 12

_Authors Note:_

 _I'm thinking of writing an off shoot/sequel that focuses around Bray and Angie and their whole story. Let me know if anyone's interested or would be interested in that._

 _Footsteps._

Bray sucked in a ragged breath as they scrapped their way across the cold concrete floor. He was utterly annoyed that someone had dared to shatter the silence of the barn, let alone have the nerve to approach him. What could they possibly want now? All morning he'd been bothered, all of them needing one dreadful thing after another. Dean more so than the rest. Despite Bray telling him they were done, he was still clinging to the idea that he could stay. After hours of Dean's pleas, Bray had had enough. He sought the solitude of the old barn, finding it easier to tolerate the damp muskiness of it than to listen to Dean continue to whine. All he had wanted was to wait in silence, to prepare himself for the war that was coming. He hadn't felt it was a lot to ask, but at least for someone, it had been.  
"I thought I made it clear I wanted to be left on my own." His voice was gruff and cold. "Obviously you want something." He got no answer. "I asked you a question." Again nothing. Just faintest sound of someone breathing. Bray slammed his fist against the workbench, hurriedly turning to see Luke standing just a few feet away; silently waiting. "Well?" The older man absently scratched his beard before wrapping his hands around the edges of his flannel shirt. "Are you simply checking in on me or has something come up?" The second Bray had said it, he felt a little stupid. Of course something had come up. Luke wouldn't be here if it wasn't.  
"You're needed." Bray nodded, grinding his teeth slightly. More problems. Lately it felt like the problems were never ending, today was no exception. It never dawned on Bray that what he was needed for, was the very thing he had spent his morning waiting on.  
"Is it Dean?" Luke shook his head no. "An interloper?" Again Luke shook his head no, peeving Bray even further.  
"I'm not interested in playing any more games brother." Luke cocked his head slightly. "You tell me I'm needed, so just tell me what I'm needed for."  
"Angie called." Bray swallowed, feeling his stomach drop into his feet at that news. His previous irritation was long forgotten. Instead he felt the anxiety quickly build up inside of him, filling him to the brim. He'd sat here for most of the morning, waiting to hear those words. Now they had come and he didn't feel any more confident about them than he had when he had woken up this morning. "And?"  
"Seems she had some trouble at the airport and was unable to call until now." Bray's eyebrows went up in suspicion. He didn't like how Luke had phrased that.  
"Trouble?"

Bray narrowed his eyes slightly as he pondered that word; _trouble_. The only trouble she could have had was either with the airline or with security. Beyond that, it should have been clear sailing for her. "What kind of trouble?"  
"Roman." Bray's eyes opened to the point that they nearly bulged out of his skull. Unquestionably, it had have to have been Roman. Nothing else beyond it being Roman seemed appropriate. "Seems he used her stolen phone to follow her here." Bray closed his eyes, shaking his head. That damn phone. How could one stupid little device cause so much worry? "Once he tracked her down at the airport, he coerced her into bringing him out here."  
"Coerced?" Bray made no attempt to hide his contempt of that word. Nor did he bother to hide his disdain at the idea that Angie had been forced into helping the over grown brute. "Coerced how?"  
"He threatened to expose her as your spy and your..." Luke uncharacteristically paused. Bray opened his eyes, the silence only irritating him further. "My what? He accused her of being my what?" The look became pained. It was obvious he was trying to be tactful. Bray leaned back against the work bench, crossing his arms in annoyance. "Just say it." Luke hesitated again. "The insults already been laid down brother. You won't hurt either of our feelings by repeating it." The weight of insulting either of them quickly lifted, finally allowing Luke to voice the two words he had been holding back; _your whore._

Bray didn't remember hurling the hammer. He barely remembered the percussive sound that the glass made as the hammer sailed through the nearest window. All he could remember was the shear anger that was pulsing through him at that particular moment. He stood there seething, his fingers twisting their way into his thick beard. He was tired of this; tired of being levied with the false accusations and lies. It was vexing that all of them were being measured against a hypocrite's double standard.  
"Denial must be a wonderful thing." Luke didn't respond to that statement. He didn't need too. "Of course that petty fool accused her of that. He's too damn blind to his own short comings not too." Bray's fingers made their way out of his beard, his hands falling back to his sides. "I assume the result of his threat would be that someone would become unemployed?"  
"It was." Neither man needed to voice who that would be. The both already knew. Bray quickly ran a hand over his hair, easily letting out another frustrated sigh.  
"I'm done this, with these _charlatans_." Bray looked up at Luke. "We are so much better than _them_. Yet they continue to drag us down and now..." Bray faded off, not wanting to voice the last part. He didn't even want to think it. After all the misfortune they had already had, Bray didn't want to hang even more out in the universe by the mere suggestion of something happening to Angie.

Instead, Bray quickly turned the conversation back to Angie's arrival. It was his hope that he could distract himself with the happy news of her impending arrival. He needed the happy news right now. Everything else could be handled in due time. For now, he just needed to know that she was here without any further complications. "Has she arrived yet?" Bray couldn't hide the impatience in his voice if he tried.  
"She's here." Those two words made everything stop. _Finally_. Bray closed his eyes, letting the sheer joy of the news wash over him. How long had he waited to hear those two words? "I knew you'd be pleased with that news." Bray opened his eyes to see Luke's sober expression.  
"Mildly." Bray shot him a wry smile. "Where is _she_?"  
"She asked to lay down for a while." Bray only nodded, quelling his irritation of missing her arrival. It had been his own fault for missing it. Had he stayed in the house, then he would have been there to take the phone call himself. Instead he'd come out here. Obviously the price for that was missing Angie's arrival.  
"Then come get me when she wakes."  
"There may be obstacles with her." Bray cocked an eyebrow to that. It seemed like Luke was acting as if obstacles regarding Angie were something new. "Obstacles beyond the norm anyway." Bray gave him a skeptical look. "Coming here has made the exterior fall away. She can't hide that she's damaged…broken." Luke got quiet for a moment, seemingly reflecting on the situation. "She could lash out."  
"She won't." Bray shoved his hands into his pockets, squaring his stance slightly. "Not in the way you think anyway." Luke narrowed his eyes, slightly unsure by that. "I wouldn't have asked this of her if I thought she would be any different than she is now. I can see her, the whole her. I know what's been hiding just beneath that cool surface all along." Bray gave Luke a confident smirk. "Leave her to me brother. I'll take care of her." The larger man nodded, seemingly satisfied with Bray's answer.  
"She insisted on a room with a lock on the inside." Of course she had. He had expected her too. Bray would have thought her a fool not too. "So naturally that only left yours."  
"Naturally." Luke shifted uncomfortably at Bray's tone.  
"We can move…" Bray easily shook his head no, cutting Luke off.  
"Let her stay there for now. If she wakes up somewhere different then she's likely to leave for that abysmal hell pit she calls _home_ at her first chance." Bray stretched his shoulders, grunting when one of them popped from the strain. "I can fight that battle with her when the time comes. In the meantime..." Bray scratched his jaw. "There are more pressing matters that require my attention. I trust you handled Roman." The name came out as a growl. "I'm assuming he arrived as well." Luke nodded.  
"Erick dumped him with Ambrose for the time being." _Dumped_?  
"Why? There's no need for them to stay. If Roman's here, then have him take Dean. Let them sort out their problems elsewhere. They surely don't need my house for that." Luke made an unreadable face. "What is it? What else has happened?" Luke hesitated for a moment, seemingly grimacing at the idea of having to deliver more bad news.  
"Roman had an accident of sorts." Bray closed his eyes, grinding his. "As a result, he may not be fit to travel for a day or two." Bray's whole body sagged under the weight of that news. He had wanted them gone the second Luke had told him Roman was on his way. He needed them to be gone, if for nothing else than to retain what was left of his sanity. "Your hands are full as it is. If you want, Erick and Braun can handle them. You don't need to worry about it." Bray scoffed, running his hands over his face. Unfortunately it was exactly what he needed to worry about. It had been hard enough keeping Dean confined to the house. Things weren't going to be any easier now that both of them were here. The second Roman was well, he wasn't likely to just leave. He would be sure to cause even more problems than he already had, just for spite.  
"They're both in Dean's room?" Luke nodded.  
"Do you want them moved?" Bray quickly shook his head no.  
"Leave them. I'll go up and address them once I've had a chance to collect my thoughts. In the interim….just keep them contained. Lock them in if you need too. " Bray scratched his forehead, missing Luke's smile at that last part. "Put Erick with Angie. He can stop her if she tries something stupid." Not that Bray expected her too. Never the less, the last thing he wanted was for her to wind up hurt or dead before ever getting the chance to see her. "I'll deal with the rest once I've had a chance to handle Roman and Dean." He let his hand fall away from his face as he turned back towards the work bench. Bray let himself lean against it, welcoming the support it offered. He felt like he had aged a year in the last five minutes. It wasn't a good feeling.  
"There is one other thing." Bray winced, letting his forehead fall onto the table. God what else could there be? "In her rush, Angie left her car keys with me."

Bray instantly stood up, easily facing Luke. He would have sworn he hadn't heard the larger man right. She hadn't been _that_ careless. There was no way she could have been **_that_** careless.  
"She did what?" Luke produced the keys, effortlessly holding them out so Bray could see.  
"I drove us in and in her haste to get into the house, she must have forgotten about them. I doubt she's even missed them." Bray doubted that as well. If she had, then she would have made her presence felt faster than he could breathe. "What should I do with them?" That was the big question, wasn't it? Bray couldn't stifle the temptation of holding onto them, simply because it gave him complete control over the game. As long as he had her keys, she would be forced to stay. There would be no running home. No hiding behind the hard exterior. She would have to face him as her broken self. That was a decided advantage when it came to him fulfilling her purpose for being here. But he couldn't go back his promise of good intentions simply to slate his own desires, could he?  
"It would be… _wrong_ …to keep them." Bray glanced up at Luke, seeing the older man's curious expression. "Wouldn't it?"  
"She left them behind. Keeping them seems appropriate." Luke grinned ever so slightly. "For safety." Bray grinned back, liking where this was heading. "She still has her phone. If she wants to leave that badly then all she needs to do is call a cab." Bray's grin fell, his lip involuntarily twitching at that statement. He briefly wondered how difficult it would be to relieve her of the damn thing, if nothing else then for him to throw it in the swamp for all the trouble it had caused. "I can always say they were lost. It's not like she would be any wiser." She wouldn't be, at least not right away. But there was always the chance of the lie being discovered, followed by the unimaginable fury that discovery would bring. It was a huge risk for Bray to even consider it, let alone take it. So why was he still thinking about taking it?  
"I brought her here to save her." Bray paused, taking a deep breath. "She's drowning man." He paused again. "The battle between us, it's long overdue. I can't have that battle with her if she's out there. I need it to be here." His eyes traveled back to the keys, staring at them again. "I can make her listen to me if she's here." Bray closed his eyes for a moment. "I can save her. I can spin her into something so sweet that I could have whatever I wanted regarding her." He paused again. _But it would be a lie;_ and Bray didn't want it to be a lie. He didn't want the eternal Sword of Damocles that was her learning the truth hanging over his head. He never wanted to dread coming home one day to find her long gone. If she was here, then let her be here because it was real. After his experience with Dean, he wouldn't accept anything less than real.  
"Then maybe there's another way."

Another way. Bray felt like a fool for not thinking of it himself. There was another way, there was _always_ another way. His eyes snapped back up to Luke's stoic face before dropping back down to the car keys. His lips twitched again as he gaze at them. They hadn't been missed yet and there was a very good chance they may not ever be missed, it all depended on how the next few days went. Either way, she couldn't get mad at him for holding onto the keys for now; especially if it was in the interest of safety.  
"Put them with the other keys." Luke smirked, his hand closing around them. "If she _asks_ for them, then you'll be happy to provide them to her." The older man nodded. "But, we'll see if she has any need of them come Monday." A sly grin played across Bray's lips as the words fell from his mouth. "Who knows…" He let out a small chuckle. "She may decide to stay."


	13. Chapter 13

_Fireflies.  
Firestorms.  
_ **Bray _._**

Angie's eyes popped open the second the name died on her lips. She laid there, her entire body quivering with terror. Bray stood nearby, watching it all as he causally leaned against the wall nearest the bed. Her eyes were open, but she wasn't awake. The nightmare still had hold of her. From his vantage point, he could see that the terror that had gripped her so completely in her sleep, had obviously followed her as she had woken. Her skin was covered in a fine sheen of sweat, while her breathing was increasingly ragged. It was obvious to him that she was still trapped in it.

Leaning forward, Bray cleared his throat in an attempt to distract her, it didn't work. He tried again, a little louder this time, only to get the same result. Growling, Bray resorted to a more direct option.  
"Angie." Again she didn't respond. Her eyes were firmly fixed to the ceiling, looking like they were about ready to pop out of her skull. " **ANGIE!** " That broke the spell. Her eyes snapped over to him, her breathing increasing as she stared at him. It looked as if she was getting paler with every breath that she drew in.  
"Bray" Her voice was rough, sounding strangled and chaotic. "Oh god…" She looked away from him, her eyes dropping to the comforter. "How long have you been standing there?"  
"Long enough." She slowly looked back up him. He could see that some of the terror had subsided, but not all of it. In its place had come a new horror; embarrassment.  
"Don't look at me like that." Bray only got more concerned. "I mean it Bray." She quickly covered her face with her hands, so she wouldn't have to look at him anymore. "Stop acting like you're worried."  
"I can promise you the concern on my part isn't an act." She peaked at him through her fingers.  
"Well it should be. I had a nightmare. That's all."  
"I believe a nightmare is an understatement, don't you think?" He scratched his nose as he continued. "You were thrashing and carrying on in your sleep." Angie just groaned at that. "According to Erick, it started the second your head hit the pillow." She let out another groan, this one louder than the first. "It's been a long while since I've seen terrors like that." He paused, more for effect than anything else. "Something troubling you Colombe?" Her hands fell away from her face, smacking against the mattress with a thud.  
"Don't call me that." She looked at him. "Not now, not ever. Call me Angie if you have too, but don't fucking call me Colombe again." He smirked at her, the worry temporarily vanishing from his face.  
"Sadly darlin, you don't get a say on that. My compound, my house, my rules." The smirk grew larger. "I'll call you what I _like_ to call you."

He moved away from his spot on the wall, coming closer to her. "And I like Colombe." He stopped at the end of the bed, giving her an even larger grin than the one before. Angie just rolled her eyes in response, turning her head away from him, so she wouldn't have to look at him.  
"Can you please not be difficult with me?" She briefly looked at him again. "I've had a bad morning."  
"So I've gathered." He wrapped his hands around the footboard, lazily leaning forward. "According to Luke you've had an exciting day."  
"I wouldn't call it exciting." He chuckled.  
"I hear you had quite the interlude with Mr. Reigns. From what I understand, he was less than a gentleman towards you." She scoffed, glancing at her hand for a second.  
"Less than a gentleman is not how I would describe his behavior." Angie looked back up at him. "Obstinate swine seems more fitting." Bray grinned at her, obviously liking that comment.  
"It does, doesn't it?" She didn't indicate yes or no. "Of course according to him, you were deserving of it. He recounts that you were less than a lady to him." She raised an eyebrow to that.  
"I didn't realize I was required to be polite to people who go through my phone and threaten me with private information." She paused, toying with a stray strand of hair. "Maybe he should try being less of an asshole next time." Bray's grinned waned.  
"Is that what's bothering you then? Idol threats."  
"No." She quickly looked away from him. "I told you not worry about it. It was just a bad dream."  
"Bad dream or not." She heard him come around the footboard, moving closer to her. "You calling my name in your sleep peaks my curiosity."

Her head snapped back in his direction faster than either of them could blink. She fixed her eyes on him, hoping to mask the fear in them, but she failed miserably. "You can't hide from me colombe." He shoved his hands into his pockets, giving her a thoughtful look. "Not here." She paused, her expression becoming more distressed.  
"I'm not…It wasn't…" She was desperately trying to find a lie to justify her need to hide, but she couldn't come up with anything. It was clear to Bray that her mind was just to muddled too. Her lack of sleep was working against her. "I can't help it." She paused again, her shoulders sagging with the knowledge that she was going to have to resort to telling him the truth. "Everywhere I look I see ghosts." Bray found that interesting seeing as she had been here less than half a day. It shouldn't have been a surprise given her history here, but it was. He had always wondered if she had repressed that time to the point of forgetting it entirely. Obviously she hadn't. "I see things that never should have been…." He watched her look away, her eyes traveling around the room. "And things that never were." Angie's eyes came back to him. "I can't escape them, not even in my sleep." Tears formed in her eyes. "It's worse in my sleep." Bray got the distinct impression that the _haunting_ hadn't started when she had arrived here. If anything, he suspected that coming here had only made it worse.  
"What do you see in your sleep darlin?" She blinked back tears, simply shaking her head in refusal. "Is it that terrible?" She wasn't going to give him the satisfaction of answering, at least not directly.  
"You should have _heard_ him Bray." By him Bray assumed she meant Roman, but he couldn't be one hundred percent sure. "It was awful. _He_ was awful." Bray narrowed his eyes slightly. "He sounded just like all the rest of them." Angie blinked back more tears. "He just assumed he knew the truth."  
"Fiction is far better than reality to people like them. Lies are what keep them going. The more sensational the better." She scoffed again, wiping some of the tears away.  
"You're lucky. You're immune to it."  
"Immune?" Bray gave her an incredulous look. "I'm not immune." Her eyes drifted back down to Bray. "I move through that world, same as you. I see their faces, I hear their lies. Only difference between you and I, is I choose not to give them power over me." Angie quickly sat up, firmly fixing her eyes on him. That had struck a nerve.  
"You think it's a choice?" The tears went from ones of distress to ones of anger. "It's easy for you to dismiss them. You have the option of _hiding_." He furrowed his brow at her. "You have the boys or a dressing room or even here to shield you." She gestured at the room. "You can just shut yourself away and not _have_ to hear it." She swallowed hard. "I don't." Angie swallowed again, trying to force the lump that was forming in her throat back down. "I can't face this again." Her voice was quieter, a shaky sort of calm over taking her. "I can't go back to being an object of constant ridicule and ire." Bray's face changed slightly, indicating he instantly understood what she was talking about. "I can handle losing the job. I really don't care either way about that." She paused, taking a shaky breath. "The idea of the rumors though, that scares me." She took another breath, this one shakier than the last. "I never wanted to be here again." A tear fell from one of her eyes. "Everything I've done since then has been to ensure that I never had to face something like this ever again. Yet here I am, right back where I started." Another tear fell. "I just….it won't stop will it? It doesn't matter how far I go." She took a third breath. "It's just going to never stop." She fell silent, another tear falling onto her cheek.

Bray watched her for a second, doing his best to seem sympathetic. She just sat there staring up at him with those big eyes, making him question the soundness of his next move. On one hand, she was exactly where he needed her to be, at least emotionally. He could have it out with her here and now and just be done with it for good. Her muddled state would play into his favor, as he could convince her to go along with his plan without too much worry; or at least he thought he could. One the other hand, she was still herself and odds were that she would shred his plan into a thousand pieces faster than he could breathe. Bray knew he wasn't ready to take that chance. More so, he knew he wasn't ready to have two battles with her. The first one would be enough. He wasn't interested in fighting a second one with her after she realized he had taken advantage of her during the first. No, he wasn't interested in that at all. She needed to rest now. It was better for her if she rested. Let the battle wait, it wouldn't hurt any of them if it did.

Stepping forward slightly, Bray reached out to her, lightly running the pad of his thumb over her cheek. He brushed the tear away with a flick of his wrist, sending it flying in the general direction of the floor. "It will stop colombe." The second he had touched her, her eyes had closed. Now at the sound of his voice, her eyes fluttered open again, staring up him. "I promise you it will." She shook her head, her eyes drifting away from him.  
"How can you promise me something like that?" She looked back up at him. "It's your fault it happened at all." That felt like a knife to his gut. A fist to the face would have been an easier thing to take or that comment, mainly because he hadn't been expecting it. "Do you ever wish…" She reached out, weakly taking his hand. "Do you ever wish you could go back?" Angie stared up at him curiously. "Do you ever wonder how happy you could be if you had gone another way…. Or if none of it had happened at all?" Again, a fist to the face would have been easier than that question.

In truth he had done exactly that. He had always wondered what if. As he had learned, there was always another way. Things with Angie really shouldn't have been any different. But he had always supposed he had been too young to see things like that. He had been so focused on other things, on doing right by other people, that he hadn't considered things could be different. "Bray?" She squeezed his hand catching his attention again.  
"No." It was a lie, but he wouldn't dare admit the truth; at least not yet. Of course, she didn't look like she believed him. She had a knack for being able to tell when he was lying. He suspected now was really no different than every other time she had ever caught him. The only change was that she choose to ignore the lie and continue on. "Do you find yourself wondering _what if_?" She blinked, staying silent for a moment before she finally answered him.  
"Maybe." She looked away from him, her eyes dropping back to the comforter. "More so lately." He moved again, seating himself on the edge of the bed. The mattress sagged and whined in protest at the addition of his weight. "The last 24 hours has been…interesting." She yawned slightly, her eyes coming back up to his face. He could only chuckle at that. Interesting was one way of putting it. "I can go long spells without ever thinking about it, but then one day it just hits me all at once." She made a gesture that mimicked getting hit in the face. "Or the nightmares will start and I won't sleep for days on end." She let out an odd sort of laugh. "Tends to be worse when we're down this way, but then I suppose that's to be expected."  
"Only because you keep lying to yourself about it." That didn't get a happy response, but he hadn't been able to hold that in.  
"I'm **not** lying to myself."  
"No? I must be mistaken in my assumption that frequent nightmares and emotional break downs are a sign of _true_ happiness." She narrowed her eyes at him.  
"Because you're such an expert on the subject." Her jaw was clenched in annoyance. "You obviously know how to make me happy." There was an iciness in that, which Bray didn't like. It was a not so subtle warning to stop. That warning was further emphasized when she fixed him with a hard stare. ""Don't start with me. I'm not in the mood to fight with you." He pulled away slightly, letting go of her hand.  
"I'm not starting anything with you." Not directly anyway. "I'm not here to quarrel, but make no mistake, you and I have things that need to be _discussed_."  
"I'm not here to _discuss_ anything. This isn't a social call Bray. I came to get Dean. I plan on **leaving** with Dean." He grunted, not liking that answer. "If you don't like it then tell Luke to throw them both in the car and I'll leave with them right now." He definitely didn't like that.  
"We agreed that you would stay till Monday morning. You gave me your word you would." She gave him another stern look.  
"Then don't start your psychobabble bullshit with me. I don't care how tired I am, I'm **not** going to fall for it." She threw her legs over the side of the bed, shakily standing up. " **You** don't get to lecture me on why I'm unhappy, understand?" Something inside him snapped.

Bray grabbed hold of her arm yanking her back onto the bed with a fair amount of force. He wasn't going to be instructed in general, especially not in his own house and certainly not by her. He was off the bed in a flash, standing over her with a cross stance.  
"You **dare** to tell me what I can and cannot do in my own home?" She laid there, staring at him with a shocked expression. "Your place is **not** to _instruct_. Your place is to _listen!_ " He spit the last word out with a harsh tone, his lips curling into a sneer. He stood over her, watching as the shocked expression that had been on her face vanish. In its place came a cross glare that was identical to his own.  
" **Wrong.** " Her voice was forceful, to the point of being defiant. "My place isn't _either_ , because I have no place **_here_**." She sat up, easily brushing her long hair out of her face. "This isn't my world, _remembe_ r?" The snide remark irritated him. The defiance irritated him even more. Had it been anyone else, he probably would have been inclined to slap them; but he chastened himself with her. Instead he chose to grind his teeth in annoyance, making his displeasure evident with the expression on his face.  
"You have a place while you're here and while you're here you'll do as you're told. I will **not** be disobeyed in my own house; not by anyone, but most of all, not by you. **_Understand_**?" He matched her snide tone from earlier, seeing her sneer at it. "You can spit and hiss all you like about it, but we will settle things between us." She folded her arms, staring up at him in disgust. "If you choose to drag it out then, so be it. I'll throw the lock on that door and you'll stay in here until you change your tune." Her expression and tone changed almost instantly. The defiance fell like a weight, crashing down around her.  
"You can't do that. You promised me…." Her voice had gone from forceful to small. She reminded him of a scolded child, doing her best to stay his hand from punishment.  
"I promised you that I asked you here on good intentions. I never said you could leave on those same intentions."  
"Good intentions or not, I'm leaving on Monday." She was _trying_ to sound authoritative. She wasn't succeeding, but she was trying.  
"You'll leave when I say you can." He said it a manner where it shouldn't have been a question. Unfortunately with her, everything was a question; no matter how definitive it was.  
"Then you better say it's Monday. The company knows…."  
"They know you're in Louisiana darlin. As I recall you told them it was a _family_ thing, right?" He grinned at her. "You're family ain't around here anymore." He leaned forward looking her in the eye. "If they come looking, it won't be here."  
"I still have my phone and the rental. There is nothing stopping me from breaking one these windows open and climbing out." Bray only laughed at her. It was true, there was nothing stopping her from doing that.  
"You're welcome to try and fly away colombe, but that's going to be a touch difficult since you left your car keys with Luke." All the color drained out of her face. "As for that pesky little device…" He shrugged. "How easy do you think it would be for one of us to just take from you?" She swallowed hard, unable to find an answer to that. "The sooner you and I settle this, the sooner you can leave. That's if you _want_ to leave at all. You may decide you want to stay when it's all said and done."  
"I think the last thing I'll want to do, is stay." He chuckled at her. "Never the less, if that's how you want to play it, then fine; that's how we'll play it. You and I can attempt to settle things, but I'm fairly sure nothing will change." Bray took that as a challenge.  
"We'll see." He gave her a final grin slowly stepping back. "But I suggest you get as much rest as you can. I have a hunch you'll need it." He reached the door, slowly opening it. "Pleasant dreams." He gave her a wink, missing her infuriated face when he turned away from her and closed the door behind him with a thud.

Let battle commence.


	14. Chapter 14

It hadn't been the sound of raised voices or slamming doors that had roused Dean from his restless slumber. He'd been fine with all of that. Growing up in apartments tended to make you like that. No, what had drawn him back to consciousness was the rich smell of bacon. The second the smell had hit his nostrils his stomach had rolled in protest, growling loudly enough to wake the whole damn compound. It demanded to be filled after the poor excuse for a dinner from the night before had left it less than satisfied. He'd laid there on the floor, curled up on the blankets and pillows that Roman had thrown to him, trying to ignore it. But it was as persistent as he was. It refused to be ignored. It felt like it was a constant cycle of it growling and rolling in over itself as it continued its demand for food.

A groan from Roman's side of the room broke Dean's concentration. A second later a pillow struck him in the side of the head, making him jump off the blanket he was on. Dean sat up with a start, rubbing the back of his head as he glared at the bed. He had wanted to ask what Roman's problem was, but he thought better of it. He knew what Roman's problem was. That had been made clear last night, before and after dinner; hence him being on the floor. Roman hadn't wanted to be in the same room with him, let alone the same bed. But Bray wasn't about to offer them anymore hospitality. One meal and one bed seemed sufficient, especially since the larger man's focus had shifted almost entirely to Evangeline. As far as Bray was concerned, Dean and Roman could fall off the face of the earth and he wouldn't be bothered by it. He was too busy with his _Angie_ to notice much of anything beyond her. That thought irritated Dean. It irritated him as he got up and the irritation followed him all the way down the back stairs. To him at least, Bray showering Evangeline with attention, especially when she didn't want it, hardly seemed fair.

Dean reached the bottom of the stairs pausing on the last step when he heard a scream followed by a loud crash. To him, it sounded like it had come from the back of the house. Without thinking, he leapt off the last step, sprinting for the kitchen. He didn't have to sprint fair. In reality, it was able to reach it in a matter of steps. When he got there, the same warm velvety smell that had pulled him from his slumber still hung heavily in the air. From his vantage point, he could see the stove was still turned on; the burner glowing red from the heat. Next to it was a plate full of cooked bacon, left to cool. Swallowing, Dean apprehensively stepped deeper into the kitchen. He spotted the pan laying on the floor near the stove. It was obvious that it had been knocked to the floor a minute earlier, causing the crashing sound. He turned slightly, relieved to know it was only the pan and not anything worse. His relief though, was short lived.

Dean paused when he heard muffled voices out on the back porch. He walked past the fallen pan, his stomach dropping into his feet the second he spotted Bray hovering over Evangeline. At first glance it looked like a tight embrace. She was leaned up against the side of the house, with Bray resting his forehead on hers. He was whispering what Dean imagined were soft sweet words to her. For a second, Dean felt his lip twitch in jealousy. It hadn't been that long ago that Bray had held him like that. He could recall the countless lockerooms and hotels where Bray had had him in that exact position. If Dean tried he could still feel Bray's body pressing into his own. He remembered Bray's hot breath brushing over his face as their lips had come together in a soft kiss. He could remember every praise, every promise of love that Bray had ever said to him. Dean physically shuddered at the memory of them. Now here he was, watching Bray do the same thing with someone else. For a split second it was too much for Dean to bear.

He felt his jealousy go to a white hot rage in a matter of breaths, his feet carrying him toward the couple. Somewhere along the way he had picked up a pan from the floor, gripping it with a ferocity that later frightened him. The pan had already been up in the air, the hot bacon fat dripping all over him, burning his exposed flesh. He _wanted_ to smack Bray with everything he was worth. Dean had been _ready_ to strike Bray with everything he was worth. He almost had, had it not been for Evangeline telling Bray to fuck off. Dean stopped moving when he heard that. It had snapped him out his rage long enough for him to get a better look at the situation.

His eyes roamed over the embrace again. Everything still _looked_ the same, except this time, Dean could see the subtle differences between what he _thought_ was there and what was _actually_ there. Evangeline was still leaned up against the house, except instead of being gently pinned to it, it was clear Bray had her trapped there. His large hands were wrapped around hers, pinning them against the old siding as she weakly struggled against him. Now he could hear the supposed sweet words he thought Bray had been whispering in Evangeline's ear. They weren't sweet, in fact they were the very opposite of sweet. It was painfully obvious to Dean that he wasn't interrupting a lovers tryst. No, it was clear that what was going on in front of him was far more sinister.

"Now now darlin'…" Dean watch as Bray leaned his body further into hers, using his weight to hold her fast. "No more runnin'." He gave her hands a squeeze, making her wince in pain. "If you're rested enough to make breakfast, then you're rested enough to _talk_." She grunted, trying in vain to push him off of her yet again.  
"The _only_ talk I want with you is the one where you agree to get the fuck **off** of me." Again she tried to move him and again she failed. It reminded Dean of a snake with a rat. The longer he stared, the tighter Bray's hold got. It was like the larger man was trying to suffocate her. The only indication that he hadn't was when Bray tickled her exposed palms with his fingers, making her jump at the sensation. "Bray!" She thrashed against him again, desperately trying get away from his fingers. All that earned her was a cruel laugh from Bray as he immediately repeated the action, getting the exact same result. "You fucking asshole! **Get. Off.** "  
"Such a charming vocabulary dearest Angie." The sarcasm wasn't lost on Dean. "You're always so eloquent at work, so good with your sense of decorum." He gave her a toothy grin. "I wonder if you might be able to use some of that here." He tickled her palms for a third time. "It might yield you a kinder result." That tickle earned Bray a sharp, swift kick to the groin.  
" **Fuck Off.** "

He was off her in an instant, howling as he doubled over in pain. Evangeline made a move for the screen door to her left, but Bray's hand leapt out at the last second, easily grabbing hold of her.  
"Let **GO**!" He jerked her closer, his hand going from her wrist to her hair in a flash. Bray's fingers twisted their way into her unbound hair, allowing him to get a firm hold of her. Quickly, he yanked her down to her knees by her scalp, causing her to cry out in pain.  
"You little…" He jerked her head up, forcing her to look at him. "You're going to _wish_ you hadn't done that, darlin." Bray grunted, wincing in pain as he brought himself to his full height. "Not once I'm through with you." There was an evil glint in Bray's eye, one that Dean recognized all too well. Evangeline was about to be in a bad way, unless someone did something about it.  
" **Hey!** " They both looked at him, finally noticing him for the first time. "That's enough!" Their eyes slowly moved up to pan, which was still raised in a semi threatening manner.  
"Ho…"Bray had to take a deep breath. "How did you get down here?" Dean ignored him, not bothering to answer his question.  
"The fuck does it matter? Get your fucking hands off of her. **Now**." Dean spun the pan in his hand, giving Bray a hard look.  
"You gonna hurt me with _that_ if I don't?" Bray gave Dean a sneer as he nodded at the pan. "You could have grabbed a cast iron one. At least then you'd _look_ threatening." Bray let out a low chuckle. "It looks good on you though. You'll make a fine little thing for Roman once he's all better." Bray dropped his eyes to Evangeline. "Won't he pet?" He gave her scalp a tug for emphasis.  
"I **mean** it Bray!" He spun the pan in his hand again, watching as Bray looked away from Evangeline.  
"Take your ass back upstairs boy. How I _deal_ with her **isn't** your concern." Dean licked his lips, unsure of how reply to that. Bray was right. It wasn't Dean's concern. He wasn't even sure why he cared. But for whatever reason he did and he was determined to make it his concern while he was here.  
"I don't give a fuck whether it is or it isn't. Take your hands off of her or I'll beat you dead with this stupid thing." He waved the pan around, causing Bray to laugh at him again. "Don't believe me?" _Fine._

Dean brought the pan back, smacking the larger man on the side of the head with everything he had. Bray wailed in pain, instantly letting go of Evangeline so he could grab where he had been struck. Dean watched him stumble back towards the rear door of the porch. He waited, making sure she was out of Bray's reach before before he quickly grabbed Evangeline by her bicep, pulling her to her feet. "You alright?" She nodded, rubbing her sore scalp. "Good. Get behind me!" She did so, both of them watching as Bray recovered from the blow. He snarled at Dean, charging him head on. Dean brought the pan up a second time, whacking Bray on the top of his head. The blow caused Bray to wail again, but he didn't stumble back. "What part of beat you dead did you not get?" Bray stood there, baring his teeth at both of them while he held his head in pain.  
"You have no idea **what** you've done." Dean smirked at him.  
"I know exactly what I've done. I whacked your ass with a skillet." Bray didn't look amused by that, in fact he looked as hot as the stove. "I gave you the option to take your damn hands off of her, but you wouldn't listen. Serves your stupid ass right."  
"And you think that's going to be it?" Bray took his hands away from his head, both of them noticing the small trickle of blood that was running down his forehead. "Her and I, we have unfinished business. Mark my words colombe…." Dean watched Bray's eyes shift from him to behind him. "You don't **leave** until we finish it."  
"She _leaves_ when she **wants**." Bray's icy glare shifted back to Dean. "She ain't a part of this family any more than I am. You can't **make** her stay asshole."  
"Dean please…." Bray took a step forward, coming nose to nose with Dean. The look in his eye had gone from cold to death in a blink.  
"She _leaves_ when **I** say she can." Bray gave him a crazed grin. "Try to take her, I **dare** you." He paused, taking a shaky breath. "I promise you if you do that **none** of you will make it off this property _alive_." Dean swallowed hard. "If it makes you feel big and strong to be her protector in here, then be my guest. Protect her at will. Makes no difference to me." Bray ran his fingers over his beard a sinister grin crossing his lips. "I won't have to wait much longer." Dean nervously swallowed, much of his vibrato fading away with that statement. "After breakfast, she's **mine**." Bray took a step back, giving them both a grin. "The boys will be by later to collect y'all and see you off the property. I suggest you warn Roman. I'd hate for Erick to have to throw him into another hard object to get him to behave." Bray chuckled at that. Personally Dean didn't find it overly funny. Never the less, Bray continued to laugh as he closed the short distance between them and the screen door. "Till then…" Bray stopped at the door, turning back to face them. " _Darlin'_ " Bray tipped his hat to her, his cold laughter falling from his lips the second he had finished the sarcastic gesture.  
" _Fuck._ " Dean felt a pang of guilt at the intrusion of Evangeline's soft, trembling voice. He realized that in his attempt to protect her from Bray and his wrath, he'd probably only delayed the inevitable. Whatever was meant to happen, was going to happen the second he and Roman were gone. That was if Bray wanted to wait that long. Once the boys had _collected them_ , Bray was free to have it out with Evangeline without any further distractions. She was fucked no matter how he sliced it. Worst of all, she knew she was. Slowly, he causally turned back, dreading what he was going to see. He'd had a small hope that it wouldn't be that bad. She'd been silent up until then. What he saw though, broke his heart.

Evangeline was only slightly behind him, her whole body quivering as tears spilled out of her eyes and over her cheeks.  
"Hey." She looked at him, her eyes struggling to form a hard look. "Look I didn't…."  
"Forget it." She swallowed hard. "You meant well." She tried to offer him a small smile, but she failed. "What's going to happen, needs to happen." Dean gave her an unsure look.  
"What needs to happen?" He didn't know why he asked it, beyond appeasing his own morbid curiosity. Normally, Dean wouldn't have cared. But there was a mystery surrounding Evangeline. Everything about her presence here was an unknown. There was no explanation as to why she was here or why Bray wanted her here. The closest Dean had gotten to an answer was Bray's threat of finishing things. Now he supposed he wanted her side of the story. "What did he mean by _finishing_ things?" She shot him a wary side eye. "I owe you for covering my ass while I made a fool of myself here. Least I can do is try to return the favor." She didn't look convinced, more so, she didn't look like she trusted him. "Look whatever it is, it stays with me. I'm not interested in spilling your secrets."  
"Roman is." That made Dean pause. "He thinks he knows what's going on. He thinks we're together. What's going to stop you from thinking the same thing?" Now he understood the hesitancy. "All it's going to take for me to lose my job is for you or Roman to go to the office. What am I supposed to do then? I'll be ruined."  
"I've got the advantage on Sassy Pants Mcgee; I know Bray." Dean watched the relief wash over her face. "If you were with Bray then you wouldn't be standing here talking to me. You'd be with him. The fact that I had to beat him off of you kind of kills that whole you and he are a thing mentality for me." He reached out, gently laying his hand on her shoulder. "How about you tell me what's going on and see if ole Dean-o can't help you out?" He gave her a keen look, watching as she considered it for a few seconds before she finally caved.  
"Not out here." She nodded toward the kitchen, slowly pulling away from him. Dean watched her step through the open doorway. He waited until he heard a chair grate its way across the old tile file to follow her in. Even if he couldn't help, he would have some answers and in his mind something was better than nothing.


	15. Chapter 15

Dean followed her into the kitchen, lazily taking a seat across from her. The look on her face was one of utter terror. "Relax." She looked up at him. "We're cool." She blinked, nodding slightly.  
"I know." She ran her hands over her thighs, her nails digging into her flesh, tracing red marks across the pale skin. "I just…I never talk about this to anyone." He nodded. Dean had figured as much.  
"We all have shit we don't wanna talk about Evannn…"  
"Just call me Angie. Everyone else does." He gave her a small smile.  
"Fair enough. Anyway, we've all got skeletons. Me…" He pointed at himself. "I don't talk about when I was a kid. To painful, ya know?" He swallowed, noticing that she had grabbed the plate of bacon from the stove, placing it between them as some sort of buffer. He sat there staring at, using it as a momentary distraction to get the focus off himself and back onto her. "So what the fuck is going on here?" Gingerly, he reached forward, grabbing a few of the strips off the top. You say it's settled, he says it's not; what gives?" He popped a piece into his mouth, accidentally cutting her off before she could answer him. "Fuck…" He briefly closed his eyes, a smile playing across his lips. "It's still _warm_." She gave him a small smile. "My compliments to the chef."  
"Thanks." She sounded a little more relaxed, which was Dean's ultimate goal. There was no way he was going to get full truth with her ready to claw her own flesh off.  
"So how did you even fucking _meet_ him?" Angie cocked her head slightly, still looking nervous. "Like I know you didn't hook up at him at work." He rubbed his nose with his greasy hands. "He's _way_ too familiar with you for it to be a work thing."  
"I'm from _here_." She pushed the words out so quickly, that it took Dean a few seconds to process what she had just said.  
"What do you mean?" He picked up another piece of bacon, nibbling on it as he continued. "Like you're from _here_?" He pointed downward, indicating the compound. "Or you're from _here_." He circled his finger above his head.  
" _Here_." She repeated his circle motion. "My family is from the town up the road." She swallowed, clasping her hands together. "That's how I know Bray." Dean blinked. "We grew up together." Of course they had. It explained why Bray was the way he was with her. He'd known Angie since they were little. It made complete sense that he would keep that connection as an adult. She was his link to _home_.  
"I didn't realize he was from here." Dean thought about for a minute. "I thought he came from somewhere else though? Isn't he from the coast or some shit like that?" He was. Dean remembered Bray telling him about his father's boat once when he was drunk.  
"He is. He came here after his father died." Dean nodded. "He considers this his home though."  
"Why? What's so special about this place?"  
"This is where he found Abigail."

He sucked in a deep breath at the mention of Abigail. Before now, Bray had mentioned her sparingly around him. He was always very tight lipped with any details surrounding her. The boys were the same. To them, Abigail was sacred. They worshiped her with the same fervor that the devout worshiped their version of God. It was something Dean had learned to accept when it came to Bray. Never in his wildest dreams did he ever think he would meet someone that lacked that same devotion, let alone tell him about her.  
"Abigail?" Dean leaned forward. "So she's fucking _real_?"  
"This is her house." He found himself floored by that. "This entire compound is _hers_."  
"Motherfucker." He just stared at her in disbelief. "But wait…" He ran his greasy hand over his face as he tried to process what she had just told him. "If you grew up with him and you knew _her_ , how are you not a part of the family?" Angie dropped her eyes to the floor. "Like it's clear he wants you here." She looked back up at him. "Doesn't he?" She shrugged, her eyes going up to the ceiling as she continued her efforts to avoid looking at him. "Or is that what he wants to settle?" Her eyes fell back to him, giving him a cautious look. She didn't fully trust him. Honestly, Dean respected that. If he was in her shoes, he wouldn't trust anyone either.  
"Like you said, to me **it** _is_ settled." She licked her lips. "I know what he wants." Dean gave her a confused look. He wasn't sure what she meant by that.  
"What do you mean?" She swallowed, pausing to take a deep breath before she gave him an answer.  
"We were friends for a long time.." She scratched her nose, her eyes falling to her lap. "And like everything else, things changed… **He** changed." Angie fluttered her lashes, her eyes going back to the old ceiling. "He wasn't like this when I first met him." A wistful smile crossed her face. "He was sweeter." Dean raised an eyebrow at that. He couldn't imagine Bray being genuinely _sweet_. In truth, Dean couldn't imagine Bray being much beyond a narcissistic asshole. "It's weird to think about it now."  
"Why is it weird?" She shrugged again.  
"It just is." A silence fell between them. It was awkward and long. Dean wasn't sure if he should egg her on or just let her have the peace. Technically he had his answer, but to him at least, she didn't look like she was finished. She looked ready to say more, just needed a minute to reflect on it before she spoke it out loud. "I loved him." Dean sat up at that omission. "I loved him so god damn much." She shook her head, the smile slowly fading. "They all told me he was bad. They all said he would hurt me, but I didn't want to listen. I couldn't listen, not where he was concerned." She unclenched her hands, running her fingers over her hair. "I told myself over and over that they were just letting their own prejudice get in the way." She brought a shaking hand up, resting it on the table. "See people around here… they raise their children to be afraid of this place…of _the family_." She tapped her fingers against the table as the word _family_ passed her lips. "My parents weren't any different." She continued on after another brief pause. "I was _always_ afraid of them before I met Bray. I don't know…" Angie shrugged a third time. "I guess he made them seem not so bad. Maybe because he wasn't so bad, or at least that's what I thought."

Dean absently reached out to grab another piece of bacon, listening intently as she continued. "I never thought he " Fresh tears began to well up in her eyes. "We were so inseparable." She brought her hand up, trying to wipe away some of the tears with the back of her hand. "Everyone tried to split us up; my family, _his_ family, hell even local law enforcement got involved. They all hated the idea of us being together." The tears persisted. One by one they began to spill out of her eyes. "We made a plan to run away together, but someone got wind of it and the local sheriff caught us about a mile from my house. They locked Bray up for a few days and sent me to live with my Aunt in New Orleans." She sniffled. "That's when Bray had enough. He stole a car and drove to New Orleans to find me. It took him two days of constant searching, but he did it." The smile returned "He told me…" She swallowed. "He told me they didn't control our destiny and that we could be together. All I had to do was come home with him and all would be forgiven."  
"Let me guess, it wasn't?" She nodded.  
"Abby was _furious_. She wanted me **gone**. But she couldn't make him listen. When she tried to force him send me away, he defied her." Dean raised another eyebrow. Knowing Bray's devotion to Abigail. The thought of any kind of defiance from Bray stunned him. "He told her we were going to be together and if she didn't like it, he would leave."  
"Fuck…" Angie nodded again. "So what happened? Did she back off?"  
"For a while." Angie let out a shuddered sigh. "Then one day he and Abby were just _gone_." Dean furrowed his brow. "No one would tell me anything." She rubbed her nose again. "I would try to go out to find them, but the others, they would just tell me no. They would drag me back to the house, kicking and screaming, and lock me in my room for a spell." Dean swallowed, understanding that scenario all too well. "They were gone for weeks, it about drove me mad with worry. I was actually preparing to make a run for it when he turned back up like none of it had ever happened. He just walked in the house as big as you please and pretended like I wasn't here." Dean blinked, finding that scenario equally familiar. "He acted like I was nothing to him, just another face in the crowd. When I cornered him and demanded to know what had happened, he told me he had seen the error of his foolish ways. To him, I was nothing more than a childish distraction." She scratched her temple, before wiping her eyes again. "He said he had to think about **his** destiny now." Angie just rolled her eyes, finally grabbing a piece of bacon for herself. "I asked him what about our destiny? I told him that _they_ didn't decide things like that for us, he and I did." She sniffled again. "He just _laughed_ at me "She took a small bite off the strip of bacon. "The last thing he ever said to me was what a silly little fool I had been." Dean blinked, his eyes falling to the floor. "Then _she_ added what a warming thought it was that if he could trick me into loving him, then he could trick the world into doing the same thing." She paused, her voice getting quiet. "I remember looking at him, and thinking he didn't mean it. He couldn't mean it. Not after everything we had gone through together."  
"But he did." She nodded again.  
"After I left I thought I would never see him again. Everyone told me it was for the best. He was in his world and I was in mine. Things were as they should have always been."  
"Let me guess, he wouldn't let you go?" Angie shook her head.  
"He did for a while." She hesitated for a split second. "The odd note or trinket would show up when I went to visit my folks, but I never accepted them. I either left them or burned them. After a while they stopped." Slowly, she finished the piece of bacon in her hand. "I didn't _see_ him again until I came back for my parent's funeral." Her tone became annoyed. "I can still see him hovering on the edge things, that smug as shit look on his face as he watched." She got a disgusted look on her face.  
"Did he want something or was he just being a creepy asshole?"  
"He wants me to come home." He blinked, nodding. "He told me he had never given me his expressed permission to leave in the first place. I told him he could go fuck himself and slapped the ever living fuck out of him." Dean managed a small chuckle. "He wants me to love him again."

That omission sobered the mood. Dean found himself feeling jealous again. It was a hard truth to swallow. The thought of Bray loving anyone but him still hurt. "It feels like he always comes back to me when he has a bad break up." Dean looked away feeling slightly ashamed.  
"Sorry about that." She just shook her head.  
"He's right in thinking this needs to happen. I know I need to stop running from him and just have it out with him once and for all." She gave him an absent look. "But I know this won't be it. He's just going to keep trying until I finally give in. It's just…never going to stop." And given that she was here until Bray let her go, he could legitimately hold her until she gave in. She was trapped.  
"Fuck him." Dean did his best to swallow down the overwhelming sense of guilt that was rising in his throat. "Fuck him and fuck this entire place." Angie gave him a slightly stunned look "Let's just go." Dean stood up. "Let's get Roman and just _go_." She stood up with him, shaking her head.  
"You heard him, he'll kill us. I can promise you he's not joking about that."  
"Yea but we've got you." She looked confused. "You know this place right?"  
"Sure, but…"  
"No buts! You're our advantage! You have to know this place just as well he does."  
"Know what it used to be." He blinked. "Not what it is now." Dean looked around the room, taking in the cracked plaster and peeling wallpaper.  
"I don't think he's redecorated much since you were here. I think we'll be alright."  
"No." She slammed her fist on the table, starling him. "That's not what I meant." She took a deep breath. "The walls can move." He felt like he hadn't heard that right.  
"What?"  
"The walls can move." He hadn't been mistaken. He had heard her correctly the first time. "Abby was always worrying someone was out to get her, so she built security measures; false walls…doors that go to nowhere...even moveable walls. It's so she could change the configuration at will. That way no one could learn the actual floor plan to the house. It came in handy when she wanted to keep people out."  
"Or in." She nodded. "And Bray knows about them?"  
"He knows about them and _every_ way out of this place. I know the way I got out before has been sealed, I'm sure the others have as well."  
"Fuck…" Dean ran his fingers over his face while he thought.  
"He knows I'm going to try to run. He's figuring on you helping me."  
"He's not betting on Roman though." He watched Angie roll her eyes at the mention of Roman's name. "What? Look about before, he's sorry about that. He was just stressed." Dean grabbed her by her shoulders, startling her. "He'll help if I ask him." She looked like she doubted that, but she didn't take it any further than that. "Where do they keep the car keys?"  
"What?"  
"The car keys? Where do they keep them?" She gestured behind him.  
"In the cabinet above the fridge, why? You're not seriously thinking of doing this are you?" He nodded.  
"Bray's gone off to sulk." He hoped. "There can't be that many of them watching for us, not this early. We'll throw everything in the car and just book it the fuck out of here. If we get enough of a head start on em, they won't be able to catch us."  
"Till we get to work."  
"We'll split up when we get to New Orleans. You can go on your way and we'll go on ours." Dean licked his lips, feeling his adrenaline beginning to kick in. "He'll chase us to the next show thinking you're with us. By the time he realizes you _aren't_ , you'll be able to vanish." She dropped her shoulders.  
"Dean this isn't going to work."  
"It has too, unless you want to stay?" That earned him a glare. "Well?" She rolled her eyes, letting out a huff.  
"You better hope he kills us quickly when he catches us." Dean laughed, pulling her into a tight hug.  
"That's the spirit!" He pushed back. "So here's the plan. I'll get the keys and get Roman. You go get what you need. I'll meet you in the front. Deal?" He held out his hand. Begrudgingly she took it, giving it a shake.  
"Deal."


End file.
